Carolyn M. Hendriks is a Professor and Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellow at the Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University.

Carolyn undertakes engaged interpretive social research that brings democratic practice into dialogue with political theory.

Carolyn has published widely on democratic aspects of contemporary governance, including participation, deliberation, inclusion, listening and representation. Her recent research explores how citizens themselves are leading collective problem-solving efforts to address governance voids or to repair dysfunctional institutions.

In 2024 Carolyn was awarded a 4-year ARC Future Fellowship (funded to over $1 million AUD) on strengthening contemporary political representation.

Carolyn is the author of four books, including Democracy in Action (with Dzur, Oxford University Press, 2025), Mending Democracy (with Ercan & Boswell, Oxford University Press, 2020), The Politics of Public Deliberation (Palgrave, 2011), Environmental Decision Making (with Harding & Faruqi, Federation Press 2009).

• Political representation
• Citizen engagement
• Democratic repair and reform
• Democratic innovation
• Community-led governance
• Collaborative governance and co-creation
• Deliberative democracy
• Diverse form of public engagement in governance
• Alternative forms of political participation
• Environmental politics
• Interpretive methods of political research