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Ben Manski Gmu

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What is the Next System? Welcome to the Next System Convergence - YouTube

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Assemblies: Comparing People’s Assemblies and Citizen Assemblies in this Moment - YouTube

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Public Sociology and Next System StudiesPublic Sociology and Next System Studies](https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmanski?miniProfileUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afs_miniProfile%3AACoAAAD4w_kBE9-opV5hOJCM-yF7AqsobUwRCkA)

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www.BenManski.com

contact form Ben Manski. Democracy as a movement

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Company Websitehttps://soan.gmu.edu/people/bmanski

Center for Social Science Research

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CHR Residential Fellow Talk: Michael O’Malley

Wednesday, April 16, 2025

"You Laugh as He Laughs: Musical Machines and their Human Avatars at the turn of the 20th century"

What if we had Real Solutions to the Systemic Crisis?

The second edition of The Democracy Collaborative's Index of Systemic Trends is here!

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Next System Speaker Series: Eleanor Finley

Tuesday, April 22, 2025 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM EDT

*Van Metre Hall (formerly Founders Hall), #118

Eleanor Finley

Eleanor Finley is the final Next System Speaker for 2025.

Please be certain to register here: https://actionnetwork.org/events/eleanor-finley-social-ecology-a-next-system-in-the-works?source=direct_link&

How can we harness society's potential to change the trajectory of the climate crisis? So many of us feel helpless in the face of corporate environmental destruction, however, in Practicing Social Ecology (Pluto Press 2025) Eleanor Finley shows that there is an amazing well of untapped power in our communities, we just need to know how to use it. Drawing from her experience of working in democratic ecology movements from the revolution in Rojava to Barcelona's municipalist movement and beyond, she maps out how social ecologists, such as Murray Bookchin, have led inspirational struggles around climate and energy, agriculture and biotechnology, globalisation and economic inequality by developing assemblies, confederations, study groups, and permaculture projects.

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Eleanor Finley is Director of Community Engaged Research and Action at Next System Studies GMU and an instructor at the Institute for Social Ecology (ISE) in Vermont. She has conducted ethnographic research on participatory democratic processes within movements such as the Kurdish liberation movement, energy and environmental justice, and degrowth. She has conducted dozens of workshops, talks, and lectures to diverse audiences in North America and Europe. Her PhD (May, 2025) is in Anthropology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

You can order the book here: https://www.plutobooks.com/9780745346908/practicing-social-ecology/

And follow upcoming book-related events here:https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572995623083

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One of the organizers may be you. Each Teach-In is organized locally by local people. Most Teach-Ins take place on university, college, or school campuses; others will take place in community centers or other public spaces. All it takes is one person to begin the process. We provide resources on how to get organizations involved and building coalitions on our website.

Another way you can build the Teach-Ins is to get your association, union, cooperative, network, section, journal, media site, or other organization to cosponsor the process. Read more about what that involves here.

The international coordination of the Teach-Ins is being performed by the Next System Teach-Ins Taskforce, a project of the Next System Studies Association Initiative, supported by staff from Next System Studies at George Mason University and the University of Vermont together with academic and community partners at The Democracy Collaborative, encuentro5, Leadership for the Ecozoic, Presente.org, U.S. Solidarity Economy Network, Move to Amend, and World Beyond War. If your organization would like to do more to participate in the coordination of the Teach-Ins, contact us: contact (at) nextsystem.org.

Our work has its deepest roots with The Next System Project: https://thenextsystem.org

Next System | Teach-ins

Ben Manski is Assistant Professor of Public Sociology at George Mason University where he serves as director of Next System Studies and of the Democratizing NOVA project at Mason's Center for Social Science Research. He studies the participation of ordinary people in the deliberate constitution of their societies. His work takes in social movements, law, politics, climate and ecology, political economy and the corporation, focusing on democracy, democratization, and constitutionalism, and he has published widely on these themes. In the past, Manski practiced public interest law for eight years and managed national non-profit organizations, direct action campaigns, and political campaigns and parties for 25 years. He is an Institute for Policy Studies Associate Fellow, Next System Project Research Fellow, Liberty Tree Foundation Fellow, and a Critical Realism Network Associated Fellow. Manski is a University of Wisconsin JD (2005) and University of California Santa Barbara PhD (2000).

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Assistant Professor

Sociology: Social movements; next system studies; sociology of constitutions; revolutionary constitutionalism; democracy; federalism and municipalism; American legal history; environmental sociology; socio-economics; philosophy of social science; comparative methods; sociological intervention; public sociology.

Ben Manski studies the participation of ordinary people in the deliberate constitution of their societies. His work takes in social movements, law, politics, climate and ecology, technology, and the corporation, focusing on democracy, constitutionalism, and system change, and he has published widely on these themes. In the past, Manski practiced public interest law for eight years and managed national non-profit organizations, direct action campaigns, and political campaigns and parties for twenty five years.

Dr. Manski joined the faculty of George Mason University's Department of Sociology and Anthropology in August of 2020. He is Assistant Professor of Public Sociology and director of Next System Studies at Mason.

For a more extensive biography, see https://www.benmanski.com/biography

Selected Publications

Book in Progress

Manski, Ben. “The Constitutional Revolution.” Routledge, New York City. (under contract).

Peer Reviewed Journals

Collins, Mary and Simone Pulver, Dustin Hill, and Ben Manski. 2023. “Targeted pollution management can significantly reduce toxic emissions while limiting adverse effects on employment in US manufacturing.” Environmental Science & Policy (139):157-165.

Manski, Ben, Hillary Lazar, and Suren Moodliar. 2020. “The Millennial Turns and the New Period: An Introduction.” Socialism & Democracy 34(1):1-50.

Manski, Ben and Jackie Smith. 2019. “Introduction: The Dynamics and Terrains of Local Democracy and Corporate Power in the 21st Century.” Journal of World-Systems Research 25(1):6-14.

Manski, Sarah and Ben Manski. 2018. “No Gods, No Masters, No Coders? The Future of Sovereignty in a Blockchain World.” Law & Critique, 29(2):151-162.

Manski, Ben. 2015. “The Democratic Turn of the Century: Learning from the U.S. Democracy Movement.” Socialism & Democracy 29(1):2-16.

Manski, Ben. 2014. “Seattle Uprising Still a Force in World Events, 15 Years Later.” Berkeley Journal of Sociology.

Chapters of Books

Pulver, Simone and Ben Manski. 2021. “Corporations and the Environment,” in The Springer Handbook of Environmental Sociology, ed. Beth Caniglia et alia. Springer, NY, NY.

Manski, Ben. 2018. “Methodological Approaches to Movement Waves and the Making of History,” in The Palgrave Handbook on Social Movements, Revolution, and Social Transformation, ed. Berch Berberoglu. Palgrave Macmillan, NY, NY.

Manski, Ben. 2017. “Universalize Power: Build the Democracy Movement,” in Welcome to the Revolution: Universalizing Resistance for Social Justice and Democracy in Perilous Times, by Charles Derber. Routledge, NY, NY.

Manski, Ben. 2017. “Beginning the World Again: Social Movements and the Challenge of Constitutional Change,” in Human Rights Of, By, and For the People: How to Critique and Change the U.S. Constitution, edited by Louis Edgar Esparza, Keri E. Iyall Smith, and Judith Blau. Routledge, NY, NY.

Manski, Ben and Karen Dolan. 2009. “Unleash Democracy: Policies for a New Federalism,” in Mandate for Change: Policies and Leadership for 2009 and Beyond, ed. Chester Hartman. Institute for Policy Studies, Washington D.C..

Journal/Special Issue Editor

Manski, Ben and Hillary Lazar, sp. eds. “Movements at the Millennium: Seattle+20.” Journal of Socialism & Democracy, Volume 34, No.1, March 2020.

Manski, Ben, sp. ed. “Symposium: Corporate Power and Local Democracy.” Journal of World-Systems Research, Volume 25, Issue 1, Spring 2019.

Expanded Publication List

Grants and Fellowships

Next System Studies, 2021-2025: $430,000

Term Faculty Development Award, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, George Mason University, 2021: $4500

Graduate Division Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship, UCSB, 2018: $7500

Flacks Fund for the Study of Democratic Possibilities, 2017 Grant Recipient: $2000

Research Fellow, Next System Project, 2017 and 2018: $6250

Sociology Research Grant, UCSB, 2015 and 2016: $1100

American Association of Political Consultants, 2012 Pollie Award (Six in four categories)

Finalist, Governor’s Business Plan Competition, Wisconsin 2010

Burrell Business Plan Competition Startup Grant, UW-Madison 2009

Courses Taught

George Mason University

Social Change and the Next System, Summer 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2025

University of California Santa Barbara ~ Teaching Associate

Madison Area Technical College

Education

PhD, Sociology, University of California Santa Barbara (2020)

JD, University of Wisconsin School of Law (2005)

BA, Sociology, University of Wisconsin at Madison (1999)

In the Media

Cobb, David. “Where are the Greens in the Green New Deal? Longtime democracy activist Ben Manski reflects on the history, and possible futures, of a Green New Deal.” The Progressive, Madison, WI, March 23 2019.

Barrett, Patrick. “An Interview with Ben Manski of the Wisconsin Wave,” in It Started in Wisconsin: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Labor Protests, ed. Mari Jo Buhle and Paul Buhle, Verso, Brooklyn, NY, 2012.

Perl, Jacob. “Megaphone: An Interview with Ben Manski of the Liberty Tree Foundation.” Jewish Currents, Brooklyn, NY, Spring 2012.

Gramling, Jonathan. “The Legacy of Chiune Sugihara.” The Capital City Hues, Madison, WI, August 25, 2011.

Zielinski, Graeme. “Green and Growing?” On Wisconsin Alumni Magazine, Madison, WI, Fall 2004.

Topical interviews on CNN, NBC News, CBS News, BBC News, Fox News, Voice of America, Pacifica, National Public Radio (various), Washington Post, New York Times, Chronicle of Higher Education, etc;regular guest onWisconsin Public Radio’s Week in Review (2011-2013)

Dissertations Supervised

Catyana Rhea Skory Falsetti, Tale of Two Municipalities: How Leadership Diversity Leads to Greater Environmental Sustainability, Equity and Quality of Life (2025)

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Experience

Assistant Professor

George Mason University

Aug 2020 - Present 4 years 9 months

Research Fellow

Next System Project

May 2015 - Present 10 years

Washington D.C.

Associate Fellow

Institute for Policy Studies

Nov 2008 - Present 16 years 6 months

LIBERTY TREE FOUNDATION FOR THE DEMOCRATIC REVOLUTION INC

17 years 10 months](https://www.linkedin.com/company/liberty-tree-foundation?trk=public_profile_experience-group-header "LIBERTY TREE FOUNDATION FOR THE DEMOCRATIC REVOLUTION INC")

Jan 2012 - Mar 2022 10 years 3 months

Greater Boston Area

Jun 2004 - Jan 2012 7 years 8 months

Madison, Wisconsin Area

Doctoral candidate, Sociology

UC Santa Barbara

Sep 2013 - Aug 2020 7 years

Santa Barbara, California Area

https://www.linkedin.com/company/earth-research-institute?trk=public_profile_experience-item_profile-section-card_image-click)

Research Assistant

Earth Research Institute

Jan 2017 - May 2019 2 years 5 months

University of California, Santa Barbara

Owner

PosiPair.com

Nov 2008 - Sep 2014 5 years 11 months

Campaign Manager

Jill Stein for President 2012

Nov 2011 - Oct 2013 2 years

U.SS.A.

White House Chief of Staff

Green Shadow Cabinet

Mar 2013 - Sep 2013 7 months

United States

Executive Committee

MovetoAmend.org

Sep 2009 - Apr 2013 3 years 8 months

Sociology, Instructor

Madison College

Aug 2009 - Dec 2012 3 years 5 months

Sister City Collaboration Committee

City of Madison

Jun 2011 - Aug 2012 1 year 3 months

State Bar of Wisconsin

3 years 2 months](https://www.linkedin.com/company/statebarofwi?trk=public_profile_experience-group-header "State Bar of Wisconsin")

May 2010 - Jul 2012 2 years 3 months

May 2010 - Jun 2012 2 years 2 months

Jun 2009 - Jun 2011 2 years 1 month

Aug 2009 - Jul 2010 1 year

Principal Attorney

Manski Law, LLC

Dec 2009 - Jun 2011 1 year 7 months

Candidate, www.VoteManski.com

Wisconsin State Assembly

Jun 2010 - Nov 2010 6 months

On July 9th, 2010, I filed papers to seek election to the Wisconsin State Assembly from Madison's West Side.

Board of Directors

Young Lawyers Division, State Bar of Wisconsin

Aug 2008 - Jul 2010 2 years

President

Press Connection Foundation

Apr 2007 - Apr 2009 2 years 1 month

I remain a member of the Board of Directors at the PC Foundation.

Blogger

TheDailyPage

2008 - 2009 1 year

Co-Chair

Green Party of the United States

2001 - 2004 3 years

Organizing Director

Progressive Dane

Feb 2001 - Aug 2003 2 years 7 months

Member Owner

Union Cab of Madison, Coop

May 1999 - Aug 2003 4 years 4 months

Board of Directors

Center for Campus Organizing

2000 - 2002 2 years

National Director

Campus Greens USA

Jan 2001 - Jun 2001 6 months

Midwest Field Director

Nader 2000

Jan 2000 - Dec 2000 1 year

Shared Governance Director

Associated Students of Madison

1998 - 1999 1 year

Wisconsin's Environmental Decade

2 years 8 months

Mar 1996 - Aug 1997 1 year 6 months

Jan 1995 - Aug 1997 2 years 8 months

Administrative Director

Democracy Unlimited of WI, Coop

Feb 1995 - May 1997 2 years 4 months

Field Director

Greenpeace USA

Jun 1994 - Jan 1995 8 months

Newspaper Delivery

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

1986 - 1992 6 years

Education

University of California, Santa Barbara

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Sociology

2013 - 2020

University of Wisconsin Law School

JD Law

2002 - 2005

Activities and Societies: National Lawyers Guild Neighborhood Law Project Political Education Committee, Teaching Assistants Association Forward Law Conference

University of Wisconsin-Madison

BA Sociology

1997 - 1999

Activities and Societies: Associated Students of Madison Council Society of the Iron Cross Shared Governance Committee, Co-chair Alliance for Democracy 180/MDE Democracy Teach-In Clearinghouse Midwest Headwaters EF! UW Greens Civil Rights Defense Coalition UW Federation of Labor Coalition for Socially Responsible Investments

My coursework was primarily in Community and Environmental Sociology (Rural Sociology). My degree was in the L&S Sociology program.

Reed College

BA Sociology

1992 - 1994

Activities and Societies: Reed Student Senate Student Action Office Reed College Green Board Progressive Student Network PCUN Support Committee Blue Heron EF! Student Environmental Action Coalition

Madison West

High School diploma High School/Secondary Diplomas and Certificates

1988 - 1992

Activities and Societies: Student Affairs Committee, Madison Metro School Board Students for Education Reform News Editor, Regent Review Amnesty International U.S. Out Now!

Publications

CHAPTER 3: The Palgrave Handbook of Social Movements, Revolution, and Social Transformation , edited by Berch Berberoglu. Palgrave Macmillan, New York, forthcoming 2018. 2018

Popular uprisings, revolutions and other major movement waves are often explained as mechanistic or even spontaneous responses to new political openings or perceived threats. Yet while such explanations may account for when movements rise up, they are less useful for explainingwhy and how they rise up, and furthermore, what will occur in the course of a rising wave. To arrive at such explanations, I argue, social movement scholars must attend to those who do the work of movement building. We…