Civil Society Elites in the Italian Third Sector

Cecilia Santilli is a researcher in Socio-anthropology at the School of Social Work at Lund University, Sweden. Her primary research interests include civil society, politics, and policies from a comparative perspective. She is currently involved in a research project examining the impact of populism on civil society.Roberto Scaramuzzino is Associate Professor of Social Work at Lund University, Sweden. His main research interests are civil society and its functions in welfare societies and for migrant integration. He is currently leading a research project about civil society and populism, focusing on how the rise to power of populist parties affects state–civil society relations.

• 1. Introduction.- 2. Civil society and elites in Italy.- 3. A study of civil society elites in Europe.- 4. The organisational landscape.- 5. The profile of the Italian civil society elite.- 6. Professionalisation and elitisation.- 7. Career trajectories and Europeanisation.- 8. The view of power and status.- 9. A kaleidoscope of power, tradition, and transformation.

“The volume explores the European context of civil society and its elites; readers outside of Europe should supplement with materials that suit their national context. ... the book is available virtually, graduate students and researchers interested in international civil societies, policy politics, power dynamics in civil society, and equity will find this book useful. ... In general, anyone interested in learning more about Italian civil society will love this volume.” (Imoleayo (Ayo) Adeyeri, Voluntas, Vol 36 (3), June, 2025)