Inclusive Citizenship in a World in Transformation:

Co-Designing for Democracy

A unique contribution to the future of democracy in Europe by harnessing historical and quantitative and qualitative social science research, agent-based modelling, design thinking, and advanced analytical methods.

Historical Review: Portugal

Remembering Portugal’s SAAL: A Revolution in Housing After the Carnation Revolution

Historical Review: Germany

A Pivotal Moment in Germany’s Ecological Movement: The Anti-Nuclear Power Protest in Wyhl

Historical Review: Spain

Exploring Spain’s Environmental Battles Post-Franco: A Legacy of Activism

Historical Review: Italy

Italy’s Anti-Nuclear Movement: A Grassroots Victory in Viadana

Historical Review: Norway

Norway’s Wind Power Conflict: A Struggle Between Indigenous Rights and Renewable Energy

News & Events

Project Goal

Our main goal is to enhance inclusive participation and civic engagement, while expanding democratic innovation
and dynamic feedback mechanisms between citizens and institutional actors in representative democracies. This goal
is driven by the ambition to empower citizens, increasing political trust, satisfaction with democracy and societal
cohesion, thus shaping the future of democracy in a world in transformation. To achieve this goal, INCITE-DEM
will pursue the following seven interrelated activities.

Project Activities

Historical Review

Incite-Dem aims at reviewing historical practices of political participation and civic engagement from the end of the WWII to today. The review will focus on sustainability-oriented participation and engagement.

Dialogue Tool

Incite-Dem will co-design a policy dialogue tool with policymakers, educators, students, and democratic initiatives. The tool will help to study trust building, polarisation, and consensus-seeking processes.

Evaluation of Democratic Innovation

An assessment of the democratic innovations, developed through democracy labs, through advanced analysis, choice experiments and interactive fora to establish how different participation and engagement processes can complement each other.

A Community of Practice

Incite-Dem will build on the wide participation of citizens and diverse stakeholder groups to spread its messages and contribute to a wide uptake of inclusive democratic innovations for socio-ecological transformation and wellbeing in Europe.

Understanding Key Conditions For Participation

An analysis of current societal trends in various aspects of participation and engagement. It will deepen our understanding of participation and engagement needs  in pursuit of a sustainable and sociocultural transformation.

Democracy Labs

A series of co-creation events, engaging citizens in proposing democratic innovations and solutions. In this way citizens will take part in proposing new democratic approaches.

Developing Policy Guidance & Roadmap

Incite-Dem will provide guidance on how to strengthen political participation and civic engagement and increase political trust and satisfaction with democracy to address socio-ecological challenges.

Comparative Case Studies Of Civic Participation And Engagement

Qualitative research, comparing (at least 15) case studies of different forms of civic participation and engagement, with attention to more vulnerable and disenfranchised segments of society.