1. Introduction. Civil society activism under authoritarian constraints Francesco Cavatorta 2. ‘Everyday citizenship’ under authoritarianism: the cases of Spain and Portugal Pedro Ramos Pinto 3. Dissident writings as political theory on civil society and democracy Marlies Glasius 4. Civil society activism and authoritarian rule in Romania and Chile. Evidence for the role played by art(ists) Caterina Preda 5.Contesting order in Tunisia: crafting political identity Laryssa Chomiak and John Entelis 6. Voice, not democracy. Civil society, ethnic politics and the search for political space in Central Asia Matteo Fumagalli 7. The influence of civil society activism on regional governance structures in the Russian Federation: cross-regional policy comparisons Karina Mikirova, Kathrin Mueller and Johannes Schuhmann 8. Entrenching authoritarianism or promoting reform? Civil society in contemporary Yemen Vincent Durac 9. Relations between professional associations and the state in Jordan Janine Clark 10. Building an ‘activist diaspora’ as a response to authoritarianism in Myanmar: the role of transnational activism in stimulating political reform Adam Simpson 11. Civil society in the digital age: how the Internet changes state–society relations in authoritarian regimes. The case of Cuba Bert Hoffmann 12. Reconsidering two myths about civil society. Evidence from Afghanistan Kevin Gray