Abstract
Civil society is often seen as an important part of societal governance, and often discussed as the intermediary link between individual and society. There is a plethora of studies about how the surrounding society enables and limits the agency of the organizations that make up civil society. This chapter presents a longitudinal case study of the governance within a large, member-based, federative Swedish civil society organization - IOGT-NTO. The study illustrates how one of the major goals of the organization - to provide and promote cultural activities for members and non-members alike - is transformed intp an organizational tool. This development is first propelled by the merger between the larger IOGT and the smaller NTO in 1970. It is further enhanced by the outsourcing of cultural activities to other organizations within the wider movement and the subsequent narrowing of the organization's own remaining activities. This chapter tells the story of the activities that were pushed aside when the IOGT-NTO organization was radicalized.