Rethinking Federalism: Citizens, Markets, and Governments in a Changing World

Joseph Garcea is a professor of political Studies at the University of
Saskatchewan.

Rethinking Federalism is arguably one of the best books about
comparative federalism since the modern classics of the 1950s and 1960s.
Written by a panel of scholars from different disciplines and countries,
the book provides a serious and sophisticated reassessment of the nature
and value of federalism in the light of dynamic social, economic, and
political forces. Individual articles address such issues as the value
and basis of federalism, the determinants of success and failure, and
the options of institutional design. Included in the book’s treatment
of the latter issue is an examination of the role of the courts and the
relative merits of asymmetry. The conditions under which federalism
seems to function best are clearly summarized by John Meisel in the
book’s conclusion.

This volume’s central message is that analysts and managers of
federal systems must be attentive to the changing social, cultural,
economic, and political contexts in which such systems operate.
Rethinking Federalism is essential reading for those who wish to
understand the mechanics of federalism before they start toying with it.