Kurdish activism in Syria: building a post-national consensus in uncertain times This paper focuses on Kurdish political mobilization in Syria in the past 4 years. The mass protests taking place in Qamisli in 2004 and 2005 started a new wave of Kurdish political activism and in 2011, after the start of the conflict in Syria, Kurds started to form stronger political and military organisations. The Democratic Union Party (PYD) has been playing a central role in Kurdish politics in Syria and since July 2012, it has been effectively in charge of the Kurdish majority areas. The international media coverage of these developments has focussed mainly on the ongoing Kurdish–Islamic State (IS) conflict and the resistance of Kurdish forces against IS attacks, especially in the border town of Kobani. However, more focus on the ideology and demands of the Kurdish movement in Syria is needed to unpack the motivations behind Kurdish mass mobilisation and the political project the Kurds seek to build in Syria in the long run. I analyse primary sources including key political and ideological texts, manifestos, party programs, media interviews of the leading figures of the movement, speeches, news reports etc., to firstly explain the political demands raised by the PYD and the wider Kurdish movement in Syria, the type of society that they envision, the institutional set-up they propose to develop for accommodating Kurdish rights within a democratic and plural Syria, and their ideas on the recognition of cultural and political diversity and gender equality. Then, I discuss the developments that have been taking place since July 2012 and the establishment of three autonomous administrations (Cantons) in January 2014 in areas under the control of the Kurds. The model of autonomy proposed by the Kurds is seen as an alternative to authoritarianism of both Islamists and Assad’s regime. Following on, I highlight the political practices that have been fostered thus far, including steps taken to increase gender equality, build cooperative economy and environmentally sustainable multicultural communities. Finally, I discuss the understanding of emancipation and social progress that underpins such practices by examining the PYD’s ideological development and discussing the ideas that they draw from the progressive political traditions such as radical democracy, environmentalism and feminism.