Introduction : making sense of the Icelandic constitutional reform / Catherine Dupré -- The President and the Constitution/ Guðni Th. Jóhannesson -- The reform of the 1944 Constitution and Icelandic constitutionalism / Ágúst Þór Árnason and Catherine Dupré -- Iceland's near-death experience / Kristrún Heimisdóttir -- The role and impact of the constitutional commission in preparing the constitutional revision / Björg Thorarensen -- The work of the 2011 constitutional council : a democratic experiment in constitution-making / Salvör Nordal -- Crowdsourcing the 2011 proposal for a new constitution : when experts and crowd disagree / Jón Ólafsson -- The 2011 proposal for a new constitution : analysis and critical comments / Skúli Magnússon -- The 2016 Bill of the Constitutional Committee : three proposals for reforming the 1944 Constitution / Páll Þórhallsson -- Natural resources and the reform of the Icelandic Constitution / Ragnheiður Elfa Þorsteinsdóttir -- Would Article 79 of the 2016 Bill make much difference? some considerations on the legal consequences of the proposed constitutional environmental provision / Aðalheiður Jóhannsdóttir -- Iceland's new constitution is not solely a local concern / Thorvaldur Gylfason -- A politician's perspective / Katrín Jakobsdóttir -- Conclusion : What has changed? / Catherine Dupré.
Summary:
"This collection documents, analyses and reflects on the Icelandic constitutional reform process in the wake of the financial and political crisis until its closing stage in 2017. This long and complex process has deeply transformed the ways in which constitutional amendment can be approached in practice, raising theoretical issues which go far beyond the borders of Iceland, as demonstrated by the international interest that this has triggered. The book is organized in three parts. Part I positions the constitutional reform process in its full complexity and longer-term perspective, going beyond its frequent portrayal in international discussion as a result of the 2008 financial crisis. Part II focusses on the most innovative and discussed dimension of the reform, namely its processes involving a range of drafters, including so-called lay drafters and a twenty-first century digital take on 'the people' through what has been known internationally as an unprecedented process of 'crowdsourcing'. While this has been the most publicised aspect of the process, this part of the book puts this aspect in its fuller context and considers all formal stages of the reform. Part III focusses on the substantive dimensions of the constitutional reform, namely the proposals made during its various stages. The collection closes with a critical reflection on the reform's wider significance drawing out of the principal theoretical questions arising from the Icelandic experience. The volume provides both Icelandic and international observers and scholars a much needed basis for reflection on what has been, by all accounts, a ground-breaking constitutional reform process in a democratic context"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.