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Citizens’ Action for Democracy – CitiDem

Empowering citizens to participate in democracy

 

Citizen participation is the cornerstone of democratic governance, ensuring that the government is accountable, transparent, and responsive to the needs of the people.

 

 

Every citizen should be given the means to engage, but many have not had the experience, resources, or know-how, to properly become part of the discussion.

This is why we want to build the knowledge, tools, and support, together with citizens and civil society across Europe, to enable them and others to actively participate in their democracy and help shape the future of Europe. And for this purpose, we set up an ongoing consultation.

Over two years, Citizens’ Action for Democracy (CitiDem) will hold local citizen assemblies in 8 EU countries. The topics of the assemblies include: Disinformation and online participation; Climate crisis, climate justice, the circular economy and the green transition; Comparison of domestic and European democracy; Diversity, inclusion, and non-discrimination; Participation of non-citizens/migrants; Rights of mobile and marginalised workers; and Youth empowerment. 

CitiDem will further organise a range of events & develop knowledge-sharing opportunities for hundreds of citizens & civil society organisations; bridge the gap between policymakers & citizens through effective exchange; and establish the roots for a long-lasting enhancement of citizen engagement and participation in democracy.

Look out for us in Greece, Italy, Germany, France, Portugal, Slovenia, Austria, the Netherlands, and online!

Starting June 2024 to June 2026

Citizens’ Action for Democracy (CitiDem) has received funding under Grant Agreement n.101147423, from the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV) programme.

Consortium

    

Our methodology

CitiDem’s methodological approach is based on 4 main interconnected phases that will support the implementation of the respective Work Packages (WPs). First, the project will set the basis for exchange of experiences and knowledge sharing (phase 1), to produce insights for the further organisation and implementation of the Citizen Assemblies of CitiDem (phase 2). Then, previous phases will support the delivery of the policy impact of the project (phase 3) through the engagement of policymakers and other policy actors in dedicated activities. Finally, the project will ensure the further engagement of citizens, civil society organisations, experts, scientists, policymakers, and other stakeholders through events and activities targeting wider audiences and stakeholders, in order to “spread the word” for a stronger democracy (phase 4).

The assemblies

CitiDem’s Citizens’ Assemblies (CAs) will be held in 8 Member States (Greece, Italy, Germany, France, Portugal, Slovenia, Austria and the Netherlands) and will be focused on the following topics:

  • Greece: “Democracy vs. Disinformation in the Digital Era: Addressing disinformation and enhancing citizen participation online”
  • Italy: “Climate crisis and Green New Deal”
  • Germany: “Democracy Unboxed: Bridging EU-German Democracy in a Comparative Analysis: democracy, democratic instruments and citizens’ participation”
  • France: “Diversity and inclusivity in democracy: we can do better!”
  • Portugal: “Public engagement on climate change and the green transition”
  • Slovenia: “Political participation of all for the Europe of equals”
  • Austria: “Labour, Migration & Climate Justice”
  • The Netherlands: “Green transition and circular economy”

At the beginning as well as at the end of the CitiDem project, Transnational Citizens’ Assemblies will be organised.

Consultation

CitiDem wants to ask your opinion: Citizens’ assemblies are a promising and frequently used way of involving citizens in democratic politics.

  • But what do assemblies achieve in practice?
  • And how good are assemblies at really involving citizens and in keeping them engaged?
  • And how effective are citizens’ assemblies in trying to stemming the tide of distrust, anti-democratic sentiments, and the increasing prominence of far-right forces?

We would like to hear from you/your organisation on what your views and experiences are, as citizens, practitioners, scholars, or observing fellow-travellers. That is why we – as part of the Citizens’ Action for Democracy – CitiDem project (funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV) of the European Union) – set up a consultation to gather a broad range of views on citizen participation.

You can participate here. The survey comprises 16 questions on citizens’ assemblies, and should not take you more than ca. 15 minutes.

Events

30 April 2025: Webinar Citizens’ Assemblies and Militant Democracy

Wednesday April 30, 2025 17.00-18.30 (CET)

The fourth webinar of the Citizens’ Action for Democracy – CitiDem project, will discuss Deliberative Democracy in relation to Militant Democracy.

Democracy is facing strong headwinds, not least due to actors increasingly ignoring basic democratic rules, norms, and practices. This webinar will reflect on how democratic innovation, in particular in the form of deliberative democracy, can best defend core democratic values and practices. A main question will be to what extent a form of militant democracy can help to counter democratic erosion and to build more robust democratic institutions and practices.

Militant democracy will be discussed by profs. Tore Vincents Olsen, Aarhus University, and Paul Blokker, University of Bologna.

Please register here.

16 April 2025: Webinar Populism and Citizens’ Assemblies

CitiDem webinar on Populism and Citizens’ Assemblies, 16 April, 2025 (5-6.30pm CET). We will discuss citizens’ assemblies in times of populism and authoritarianism, with profs. Nenad Stojanović and Kristof Jacobs.

NB. On 30 april, there will be a follow-up event on “Deliberative and militant democracy”, with prof. Tore Vincents Olsen.

Please register here: https://unibo.zoom.us/meeting/register/dtbXVC7ETHWF5HGygz3q5A#/registration.

17 March 2025: Book seminar/webinar (Università di Bologna)

Book seminar – Nadia Urbinati, The Lottocratic Mentality: Defending Democracy against Lottocracy, Oxford University Press (2024, with Cristina Lafont).

Monday 17 March, 14.00-16.00 (CET), Department of Sociology and Business Law (SDE), Palazzo Hercolani, Strada Maggiore 45, Bologna. In-person and online event.

Nadia Urbinati – Kyriakos Tsakopoulos Professor of Political Theory at the Department of Political Science at Columbia University, NYC – and Cristina Lafont – Harold H. and Virginia Anderson Professor of Philosophy at Northwestern University -, will present their recent book, The Lottocratic Mentality: Defending Democracy against Lottocracy (2024, Oxford University Press).

The book will subsequently be discussed by Elisabeth Alber (EURAC, Bolzano), Silvia Suteu (EUI), Yves Sintomer (University Paris 8), Michele Fiorillo (Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa), and Paul Blokker (UniBo), to be followed by a public debate.

The event is organised in the context of the CERV project Citizen Action for Democracy (CitiDem), coordinated by prof. Paul Blokker (University of Bologna/SDE).

Registration for event on Zoom: https://unibo.zoom.us/meeting/register/JrbFJ6vFSXi6XPT4inzDKA.

 

7-8 March 2025: European Citizens’ Assembly (Eumans)

European Citizens’ Assembly – “How can we boost citizens’ rights in the European Union?”

Eumans is excited to invite you to participate in a groundbreaking event: a Citizens’ Assembly on democratic innovation and how it can be used by social movements to push for rights affirmation.
If you’re interested in being part of this transformative experience, please fill in the form . Participants will be selected by sortition and notified with further details. This will be the CITIDEM Project’s Transnational Citizens’ Assembly on European Democracy Reform. This unique gathering will take place on March 7-8, 2025, at the Université Libre de Bruxelles.

Why Your Participation Matters
As a citizen of Europe, your voice is crucial in shaping the future of our democratic processes. This assembly aims to explore how we can effectively advocate for citizens’ rights through democratic innovation, using the case of abortion rights and its  as a starting point for broader discussions.

What to Expect
–> Day 1 (March 7): An informative session for all 100 participants, featuring:
– Expert presentations on direct action rights and deliberative democracy tools
– Insights from committees and associations on current proposals
– A unique opportunity to co-design a democratic innovation process

–> Day 2 (March 8): A deliberative session for 50 randomly selected participants, focusing on:
– Developing concrete recommendations for European democracy reform
– Exploring innovative tools for citizen participation
– Crafting a blueprint for deliberative advocacy actions

17 February 2025: Webinar (Università di Bologna)

The first CitiDem event will be a webinar on How to make citizens’ assemblies resonate?, held on Monday 17 February, 16.00-18.00 CET, and organised by the University of Bologna. The webinar wants to discuss the question of how effective citizens’ assemblies are in actively involving citizens. In times of increased distrust towards democratic politics, may assemblies help to bring citizens closer to democratic politics? If so, what kind of citizens tend to participate more? And what kind of methodologies work best in engaging citizens? And which types of assemblies work best? The webinar will further engage with the question of whether assemblies should be linked to other forms of engagement, and if and when participation in assemblies tends to lead to more durable forms of citizens’ engagement and activism.  We have invited three scholars with great expertise on citizens’ assemblies – Melisa Ross (University of Bremen), Andrea Felicetti (University of Padova), and Yves Sintomer (University of Paris 8) – to discuss how we can make sure that assemblies engage citizens in a meaningful and empowering way.

If you want to participate, please register here (Zoom).

 

Final recommendations

During 2025 and 2026, CitiDem will hold local citizen assemblies in 8 EU countries, as well as a number of transnational assemblies. The various assemblies will produce recommendations that will be shared here in due course.

The topics of the assemblies include: Disinformation and online participation; Climate crisis, climate justice, the circular economy and the green transition; Comparison of domestic and European democracy; Diversity, inclusion, and non-discrimination; Participation of non-citizens/migrants; Rights of mobile and marginalised workers; and Youth empowerment.