INCITE-DEM was present at the 16th European Sociological Association Conference (ESA Conference), which took place in Porto between 27 and 30 August.
Two teams of researchers represented our project – CE3C and ICS Lisbon.
First, our colleagues from the Faculty of Lisbon’s CE3C – Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, João Limão, Inês Campos and Sandra Oliveira, presented the paper ‘Conference on the Future of Europe: challenges, successes and expectations’.
In this paper, the authors carry out an exploratory analysis of one of the case studies analysed by this team – the Conference on the Future of Europe – identifying some of the successes and weaknesses of this unique and innovative transnational democratic experiment. According to João Limão, who was present in Porto:
/…/ it’s a very interesting case study due to its scope and its European scale, which is unique in this type of innovative experiment, and which includes a range of different tools for collecting inputs and promoting debate, such as the Multilingual Digital Platform, citizens’ panels and plenary sessions. These are characteristics of innovation and diversity that allow for a multiplicity of analyses and interpretations.
In addition to the research potential inherent in the case study, which contributes to increasing our knowledge of democratic innovations, better understanding their characteristics, virtues and difficulties, Limão further emphasises:
Each of these case studies that we have developed at INCITE-DEM has also been a process of learning and reinforcing knowledge, which has allowed us to be better prepared to develop the instruments and approach other stages of the project, such as Democracy Labs. Thus, many of the warnings and virtues identified in these case studies have allowed us to be more careful with our work.
This was one of 15 case studies developed by the various teams in the INCITE-DEM consortium.
The second paper, ‘Reshaping Environmental Governance: Democratic Innovations in Europe‘, was presented by our colleagues from the ICS – Instituto de Ciências Sociais da Universidade de Lisboa: José Duarte Riberio, Roberto Falanga and João Moniz.
This presentation examines how democratic innovations (DIs) such as participatory budgeting, deliberative mini-publics, and collaborative governance have been applied to address the contemporary challenges of environmental governance in Europe. It explores the increasing interest in participatory democratic principles as a response to a perceived crisis of democracy, exacerbated by issues like climate change and public disengagement.
Findings indicate that while democratic innovations have demonstrated potential in engaging citizens and shaping public opinion on environmental issues, their effectiveness in translating engagement into impactful policies remains limited. The presentation also discussed various cases of Democratic Innovations and their association with policy domains, highlighting both the successes and challenges encountered in implementing democratic innovations.
It emphasizes the importance of genuine involvement, effective communication, and the role of individual agency in achieving meaningful outcomes. The conclusion calls for integrating these democratic processes into broader policy frameworks to enhance their impact, particularly concerning social and environmental justice. By critically assessing the factors that influence the success of democratic innovations, the presentation argues for a shift from focusing solely on inclusivity and trust-building towards evaluating their actual policy impacts, proposing ways to strengthen their role in reshaping environmental governance in Europe.