The Federal Idea is a collection of more than thirty papers by Canadian and international scholars on a wide range of issues relating to the theory and practice of federalism. The first section, Celebrating Ron Watts, assesses Ronald Watts' academic contributions to the study of federalism (including comparative federalism) as well as his important role as an advisor to federations across the globe. The second section, The Federal Idea: Concepts , explores different perspectives on federalism, both constitutional and citizen-related, and assesses the successes and failures of the federal idea. The final section, The Federal Idea: Practice , addresses a range of policies and practices in individual federations. In addition to case studies, the contributors deal with such issues as fiscal federalism, intergovernmental relations, federalism in the European Union, Scottish devolution, and the differing approaches to upper chambers.