Il Centro Studi sul Federalismo e le attività di ricerca in campo storico

The paper intends to present the research activities of the Centro Studi sul Federalismo, founded in November 2000 by the Compagnia di San Paolo and the Universities of Pavia, Turin and Milan. These researches are characterised by their interdisciplinary nature and they deal with the economic, juridical, political, historical and philosophical aspects of federalism, without neglecting related issues such as Europeanism, nationalism and globalisation. Federalism is examined on three levels: infranational (federal States, federalisation phenomena,such as devolution or regionalisation), regional (European integration and the development of similar processes throughout the world), and global (the United Nations and other international organisations, the issues of globalisation and international democracy). In the historical field, extensive research has been carried out and continues with regard to movements for European unity and important pro-European figures such as Altiero Spinelli, Mario Albertini and Giuseppe Petrilli. Moreover, particular attention is dedicated to the Europeanist press, political federalist thought, European integration theories, international democracy, the relationship between federalism and political ecology, the regional aspects of the process of European construction and relations between Europe and the United States of America.