Professore ordinario
SPS/01 Filosofia politica
alessandro.ferrara@uniroma2.it

Titoli di studio

Ph.D. in Sociology, University of California at Berkeley (1984)

Master in Sociology, University of California at Berkeley (1980)

Laurea in Filosofia, Università di Palermo (1975)



Incarichi di insegnamento e visiting

Ha insegnato corsi e impartito lectures in varie università, fra cui:

Boston College, Harvard University, Oxford University, Yale University, Columbia University, Rice University, Cardozo Law School, New School for Social Research in New York, EHESS and Sorbonne in Paris, CASS in Beijing, Sapienza Università di Roma, Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, e le Università di California at Berkeley, Madrid, Chicago, Potsdam, Amsterdam, Mexico City, Exeter, Manchester, Johannesburg, Coimbra, Braga, Lisbon, Berne, Barcelona, Dublin, Lyon III, Singapore, Milan, Tilburg, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Indore, Rio Grande do Sul at Porto Alegre, Mato Grosso a Campo Grande, Catholic University of Chile in Santiago

Comitati editoriali

Co-Direttore della collana Philosophy & Politics – Critical Explorations (Springer)

Direttore della collana Teoria politica per il XXI secolo (Mimesis)

Constellations, Philosophy and Social Criticism, Berlin Journal of Critical Theory, Social and Political Philosophy, Krisis, Balsa de la Medusa, Studies in Social & Political Thought, Symposion: Theoretical and Applied Inquiries in Philosophy and Social Sciences


Peer Reviewer per le riviste

Le riviste sopracitate e inoltre referee per:

Harvard University Press, Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Columbia University Press, Stanford University Press, Penn State University Press, Edinburgh University Press, Ashgate, Routledge, Sage, Polity Press

Partecipazione a progetti di ricerca e Fellowships

Progetto di Ricerca d’Ateneo 2021. Sovranità democratica: sequenziale o seriale?

Gruppo di Ricerca Borders in Transition, Abolished, Erected, Relocated, dal 04/01/2020 al 04/01/2022 vincitore del Bando “Beyond Borders” (D.R.1347/2019)

Gruppo di ricerca “Accessing Well-being: athmospheres and capabilities” vincitore del Bando di ricerca dell’Ateneo Università di Tor Vergata. 2018-2019

Gruppo di Ricerca “New Emerging Worship Patterns To Open up Urban Space”, vincitore del bando Consolidate the Foundations 2015

Partecipazione a convegni internazionali

Relazione “The Revolution of the «Most Reasonable». Rawls’s Legacy in the 21st Century”, Centennial Anniversary of Rawls’s Birth, University of Mumbai, India, 21.02.2021

Relazione “Representing the People and Transforming the Constitution”, CEPS Workshop at the University of Minho, Braga, Portugal, 26.01.2021

Relazione “Sequential Sovereignty. Constituent Power and Political Liberalism”, CEPS Workshop at the University of Minho, Braga, Portugal, 25.01.2021

Relazione “Constituent power, political liberalism and the Kelsen-Schmitt opposition”, Facult de Droit, d’Économie et de Finance, University of Luxembourg, 23.09.2020

Relazione “The populist river and its three tributaries”, at the Conference “The nature and transformation of contemporary political regimes: Sino-European perspectives”, Centre for Political Thought, University of Exeter, 13-14.02.2020

Relazione “Post-metaphysical reason, solidarity and the reasonable: on Habermas’s Auch eine Geschichte der Philosophie”, at the Conference “Jürgen Habermas: The Last Systematic Philosopher”, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, 21.11.2019

Relazione “Demos and finalité”, at the Conference Bilbao European Encounters 2019, Globernance Center, Bilbao, 18.11.2019

Relazione “Capitalism in Neoliberal Times: Rethinking the Left”, at the Conference “Capitalism and Critical Theory: a Workshop with Nancy Fraser”, Sapienza University of Rome, 4.10.2019

Relazione “What Is a People, and Who Represents It?”, at the Pavia Graduate Conference, 17-18 September, 2019

Relazione “Legitimacy and Reasonability: Reflections on Judicial Review”, at the ICON-S Conference “Public law in times of change?” Santiago, Chile, 1-3 July 2019

Relazione “Courts Also Represent. Legitimation by Constitution, Representation and the Courts”, at the “II Encontro do Grupo de Estudos Democráticos” Campo Grande, Brazil, 24-26 June 2019

Relazione “Embodied de-transcendentalized reason and the sources of solidarity” at the Conference “The History of Postmetaphysical Philosophy and the Future of Democracy: in Honor of Jürgen Habermas”, Goethe University Frankfurt, June 20-21, 2019

Relazione “Unconventional adaptation and constitutional authenticity. On Ackerman’s Revolutionary Constitutions”, Prague Conference Philosophy & Social Science, Prague, 29 May – 2nd June 2019

Relazione “Narcissism and Critique. On Kohut’s Self Psychology” at the 12th International Critical Theory Conference, John Felice Rome Center of Loyola University, Rome, May 9-11, 2019

Relazione “Rappresentanza e costituzionalismo”, Italian Senate, 14.2.2019

Relazione “Parties and Public Reason” at the Workshop on Bonotti’s Partisanship and Political Liberalism in Diverse Societies, Politeia Center and University of Milan, 31.1.2019

Relazione “A Crypto-Liberalism of Collective Self-Restraint?”, at the Workshop “Inside and Outside Global Law”, School of Law, University of Roma TRE, 15.1.2019

Module of three Lectures on “The Revolution of Political Liberalism”, Istituto di Studi Filosofici, Naples, 1-3 December, 2018

Relazione “«Most Reasonable for Humanity: legittimazione tramite costituzione su scala globale”, at the Conference “Unità e frammentazione dentro e oltre lo Stato”, ICON-S Italia, 23-24 November, 2018

Relazione “La rivoluzione del ragionevole”, at the Conference “Rethinking Political Liberalism”, Politeia Center and University of Milan, 11.10.2018

Relazione “Legitimate Authority: Too Many Gaps for One Concept to Bridge?”, Paris, Doctoral Program at SciencesPo, CEVIPOF, 4.10.2018

Relazione “Unconventional Adaptation and the Authenticity of a Constitution”, at the Conference on Bruce Ackerman’s Revolution Constitutions, Yale University, New Haven, 24-25 August, 2018

Relazione “Plato’s Cave and Pluralism”, at the Conference on “Legitimacy” of the Association for Social and Political Philosophy, Rome, 21-23.6.2018.Relazione «“Most Reasonable for Humanity”: Legitimation by Constitution on a Global Scale», at the Conference “Hegemony in the International Order”, Rome 11-12 June 2018, Institute ‘Luigi Sturzo’

Relazione “Sideways at the Entrance of the Cave: Plato and Pluralism”, at the ResetDoC Seminars on “Fountainheads of Toleration Forms of Pluralism in Empires, Republics, Democracies”, Venice, 9.6.2019

Relazione “The «Communis» in Sensus Communis”, Prague Conference Philosophy & Social Science, Prague, 19.5.2017

Relazione “Sideways at the entrance of the cave: Plato and pluralism” at the 10th International Critical Theory Conference, John Felice Rome Center of Loyola University, Rome, May 10-12, 2018

Relazione “Democracy and the Populist Challenge”, at the Conference “The State and Public Goods/Services: Regulator or Provider?”, European University of Tirana, Albania, 27-30 April 2018

Relazione “«Most reasonable for humanity»: Legitimation by Constitution on a Global Scale” at the Conference “The Legitimacy of Transnational Orders: Discussing the Idea of a World State”, Clough Center for the Study of Constitutional Democracy, Boston College, April 12-13, 2018

Relazione “Social Freedom and the Challenge of Pluralism: Reflections on Honneth’s Freedom’s Right”, at the Conference “Recognition, Democracy and Social Liberty”, Sapienza University of Rome, 8.3.2018

Relazione “La democrazia e la sfida populista”, at the Conference “La democrazia in difficoltà”, Pontificial University Angelicum, Rome, 3.2.2018

Relazione su “How is individuality possible? Georg Simmel’s philosophy and sociology of individualism”, at the Conference “Georg Simmel’s Living Heritage”, Catholic University, Milan, 30 November-1st December 2017

Relazione “How to Accommodate Modus Vivendi Within Normative Political Theory” at the Workshop on “Modus Vivendi”, 10.11.2017, Centro Einaudi, Turin

Relazione “Populism, the Crisis of Political Representation and the Future of Democracy”, at the Conference “Desafios políticos em um mundo em intensa Transformação”, Sao Paulo, 14-15 September, 2017

Relazione “What Can Political Liberalism Tell Us About Populism?”, at the ResetDoC Seminars on “The Populist Upsurge and the Decline of Diversity Capital”, Venice, 8.6.2017

Relazione “Political Liberalism, Revisited: The Upsurge of Populism and How to Cope”, at the Conference “Democracy and Dissent”, Department of Politics and International Relations, Oxford, 2.6.2017

Relazione “Coping with Indigenous Unreasonability”, at the Workshop on “The Stormy Democratic Horizon”, Prague Conference Philosophy & Social Science, Prague, 19.5.2017

Relazione “Political liberalism revisited, the upsurge of populism and how to cope with it”, at the IX International Critical Theory Conference, John Felice Rome Center of Loyola University, Rome 10-13 May 2017

Relazione “Political liberalism revisited, the upsurge of populism and how to cope with it”, at the Colloquium of the Tilburg Law School, The Netherlands, 4.5.2017

Relazione “Political Liberalism, Indigenous Unreasonability and Post-Liberal Democracy”, Trejo-Mathys Memorial Lecture, Clough Center for Constitutional Democracy, Boston College, Boston, 3.4.2017

Relazione “Six Features of a Democratic Model of Laicité”, at the Conference “State and Religions: Their Relation in Contemporary Pluralist Democracies”, Barcelona, Fundaciò Joan Maragall, 26.11.2016

Relazione “The Dual Paradox of Authenticity in the 21st Century”, at the Conference “Theory and Practice of Authenticity in the 21st Century”, Berne, 17.11.2016

Relazione “Giustizia ed equità nella società globale”, at the Conference “Diseguaglianze, Giustizia ed Equità nel Contesto Globale”, Italian Association of Sociology, Verona, 10.11.2016

Relazione “Normativismo per il 21 secolo: una riflessione su potere e autorità”, at the Seminario di Teoria Critica, “Potere/i”, Cortona, 14.10.2016

Relazione “The Overlapping Consensus and Modus Vivendi”, at Kick-off Conference on “Postsecular Conflicts”, Obergurgl, Austria, 16.06.2016

Relazione “Legitimate Authority: Too Many Gaps for one Concept to Bridge”, Prague Conference Philosophy & Social Science, Prague, 20.5.2016

Relazione “Authority, Legitimacy and Democracy: How Can Political Liberalism Respond to the Challenge of Williams’ Political Realism?”, at the Conference “Perspectives on State Authority and Democracy”, National University of Singapore, Political Theory Symposium Singapore, 5-6 February 2016

Relazione “Political Liberalism Expanded and Religious Accommodation”, at the Conference “Exploring Religious Accommodation: Socio-Legal and Political Perspectives on Exemptions”, Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona December, 2015

Relazione “El normativismo postfundacionàl de Rawls frente a sus crìticos y el desafìo del hiperpluralismo”, Facultat de Filosofia, University of Barcelona, 1.12.2015

Relazione “Constitutional Narratives and the Future of Europe”, at the Conference Blazing the Trail of a New Narrative for the Future of Europe”, Globernance Research Center, Bilbao, 30 Nov – 1st Dec 2015

Relazione “Exemplarity in the Public Realm”, at the Séminaire de recherche “La normativité exemplaire entre droit, philosophi, histoire et littérature”, EHESS, Paris, 10.11.2015

Relazione “Exemplarity and Critical Theory: Which Normativity for Critical Theory as Immanent Critique?” at the 2015 Critical Theory Roundtable, Yale University, October 1-3, 2015

Relazione “Constitutional Narratives and the Future of Europe”, at the European Studies Council – Yale MacMillan Center, Yale University: 1st October, 2015

Relazione “Social Freedom and the Challenge of Pluralism: Reflections on Freedom’s Right”, Prague Conference Philosophy and Social Science, Prague, 22. 5.2015

Relazione “Law and Violence: Deconstructing the Deconstruction of the Law”, at the at the VIIIInternational Critical Theory Conference, John Felice Rome Center of Loyola University, 7-9 May 2015

Relazione “Rethinking Political Liberalism: Hyperpluralism and the Multivariate Democratic Polity”, at the Colloquium on Law, Sehir University, Istanbul, 29 April 2015

Relazione “Constitution and Context. Reflections on Ackerman’s The Civil Rights Revolution”, at the Workshop on Bruce Ackerman’s The Civil Rights Revolution, Faculty of Law, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, 27 March, 2015

Relazione “The Complementarity of the Right and the Good”, at Conference “Le juste et le bien”, Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3, 19-20 March, 2015

Relazione “Estetica ed esemplarità: una riflessione filosofico-politica”, Lectio Magistralis, Garroni International Chair of Aesthetics, Rome, 17 December, 2014

Relazione “Democracy Today and the Renewal of Political Liberalism”, at the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, Belgrade, Serbia, 8 December, 2014

Relazione “Democracy in Transformation and the Promise of an Expanded Political Liberalism”, at the Conference on “Democracy, Contestation and Civil Society”, Porto Alegre, Brazil, 24-26 November, 2014

Relazione “Quale normatività per una teoria critica come critica immanente?”, at the Critical Theory Seminar, Cortona, 17-18 October, 2014

Relazione “Democracia y apertura: el éthos de la democracia repensado”, at the Departamento de Filosofia, Universidad de Barcelona, 26 June, 2014

Relazione “Expanding the Framework of Political Liberalism”, at the Conference “After Rawls“, Krakow, 3-4 June, 2014

Lecture, co-presented with Maeve Cooke, on “Rethinking Critical Theory once again: Immanent Critique and Immanent Normativity”, Conference on Philosophy and Social Science, Prague, May 22-25, 2014

Relazione “Democracies in the Plural: A Typology of Democratic Cultures”, at the Istanbul Seminars on “The Sources of Pluralism – Metaphysics, Epistemology, Law and Politics”, 15-20 May, 2014

Relazione “Rethinking Critical Theory once again: Immanent Critique and Immanent Normativity”, at the 7th International Critical Theory Conference, John Felice Rome Center of Loyola University, 8-10 May 2014

Relazione “Rehabilitating Authenticity: Why Agency, Self-identity and Community Presuppose Purposive Unity” at the Conference “What’s Authentic About Authenticity?” SNSF Project “Theory and Practice of Authenticity in Global Cultural Production”, University of Bern 14-15 March, 2014

Relazione “Democracy and Openness: Rethinking the Affective Infrastructure of Democracy”, at the Affections and Ethics Research Network, University of Oxford, 14 February, 2014