Karl Mannheim's proposition about militant democracy (the second of the quotes above), although written during the Second World War, still has meaning for today. Democracy is not an accomplished fact of our way of life. Nor is it free from dangers. It is under immense pressure – from inequalities of power immersed in and spread across the economic system, and cascading through to education; from political threats that restrict freedoms in response to conflicts and perceived threats to security; and from the low standing often accorded to elected politicians and the system that they are at the heart of. If it is understood in its richest sense – as holistic democracy concerned with meaning, sharing power, dialogue that transforms and transcends narrow interests, and holistic well-being – there is much to do to make it a reality.

The discussion in this book has highlighted trends that point to positive possibilities. The third way policies of marketising metagovernance have generated a dynamic from which a democratic self-organising system is able to emerge: from the spaces and tensions within plural controlled schooling, bureau-enterprise culture, entrepreneurialism, network-focused working, student voice and co-constructive approaches to learning. In these are sown the seeds of organic meta-governance – that is, governance which steers rather than prescribes and which nurtures democratic ways of working, encourages deep reflection and facilitates diversity in service of the development of people's ‘substantive liberty’ (the flourishing of all their capabilities as human beings). The development of organic meta-governance faces profound challenges, however.