Abstract as per original application
(English/Chinese): |
Crowdfunding has “democratized” financial markets by making fundraising significantly easier. Although crowdfunding is typically associated with entrepreneurship, it also has political applications. Political actors have used crowdfunding technology to advance policy and political ends, a phenomenon known as political crowdfunding. The anti-COVID restriction protest in Ottawa, the Brexit litigation in the UK, and Bernie Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign in the US are well-known political activities supported by crowdfunding.
Political crowdfunding is not limited to democracies, however. This research will be the first comprehensive study of political crowdfunding in authoritarian regimes and the resulting challenges for those regimes. Activists and the opposition in Hong Kong, Russia, Ukraine and mainland China have, with varying degrees of success, relied on crowdfunding to bypass traditional barriers to activism. Crowdfunding played a large role in maintaining the 2019 protest movement in Hong Kong. Opposition leader Alexei Navalny utilized crowdfunding to challenge Putin in Russia. Crowdfunding also contributed to the Euromaidan movement in 2013-2014 and to Ukraine’s current efforts to resist the Russian invasion. Even in mainland China where the internet is shaped by the Great Firewall, examples of crowdfunded campaigns leading to broader policy changes are not uncommon.
Focusing on the experiences of Hong Kong, Russia, Ukraine and mainland China, the research examines three aspects of political crowdfunding in authoritarian regimes. First, it will propose a theoretical framework for conceptualizing the operation of political crowdfunding in authoritarian regimes, seeking to understand the stakeholders involved, their relationships with one another, and how they might contribute to the success (or failure) of a crowdfunded campaign. Second, drawing on the four cases, the research will propose four regulatory models addressing the growth of political crowdfunding. The models’ effects on different stakeholders and their relative merits will be evaluated. Finally, it will critically reflect on the normative implications of political crowdfunding. The influence of money in politics has always been controversial, and crowdfunding technology may open up opportunities for abuse. On the other hand, the protection of rights depends on the availability of resources. By bridging the resource gap, crowdfunding technology may also help to reduce political inequality and serve as an alternative accountability mechanism in authoritarian regimes. This study promises to illuminate unexpected applications of crowdfunding and its implications for public law and authoritarian politics. The findings will be disseminated through three journal articles, conference papers, and a book proposal to be submitted to a respected academic publisher.
眾籌使籌款變得更加容易，從而令金融市場更民主化。政治眾籌是利用眾籌技術推進政策和達到政治目標。通過眾籌資助的知名政治活動包括加拿大渥太華的COVID限制示威行動、英國的脫歐訴訟和奧巴馬的美國總統競選活動。政治眾籌不僅局限於傳統民主政治體制，在香港、俄羅斯、烏克蘭和中國大陸等地也能找到相關例子。本研究仔細分析上述四個地區的經驗，探討威權政治體制下的政治眾籌。研究有以下三個重點。一、了解政治眾籌參與者之間的關係和他們的貢獻，剖析政治眾籌的生態系統。二、提出四個規管政治眾籌的模式，並比較它們對參與者的影響。三，從政治眾籌的角度反思金錢和科技對威權政治的影響。
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