Open Future Foundation’s Post

Democratic innovation is not just about citizen agency and empowerment. It is a matter of national security—especially in places such as Central and Eastern Europe. Read the essay by our Founding Head of Research and Learning Ieva Cesnulaityte: https://lnkd.in/gzXiNTgX

Embracing #DigitalDemocracy: Insights from #OGPEstonia 🗳️ The 2023 OGP Summit in Estonia provided a profound glimpse into the future of democracy in the digital age. From Estonia's pioneering e-services to the promises and challenges of digital democracy, this event ignited discussions on reshaping governance. 🇪🇪 Estonia's e-services, including legislation, voting, and health care, are leading the way in democracy through digital tools. 💻 Digital democracy offers improved transparency and inclusivity, but also raises concerns about privacy and misinformation. 🤝 Collaboration among diverse stakeholder groups is essential to develop effective digital solutions for democracy. 🚀 Bridging the digital divide and ensuring digital literacy are critical steps towards an inclusive digital democracy. 🌟 Upholding human rights and democratic values must be at the core of digital transformation efforts. Read more about the transformative potential and challenges of digital democracy and the work we're doing in this space:

#Policy 💬 Today, we are co-hosting a breakfast with International IDEA to unpack the #DefenceofDemocracy package with a group of policy experts. The main panel takes us through the main parts of the package: 🎙️ Marilyn Neven unpacks the Recommendation on inclusive and resilient electoral processes, covering, among others, inclusive participation, election integrity, election observation, foreign campaign funding, and electoral rights. 🎙️ Our Director Ken Godfrey laid down our concerns regarding the foreign interference directive: Negative effects on the EU's credibility: the EU is being criticised for applying double standards, as the directive resembles foreign agents laws the EU criticised in the past. The directive has numerous loopholes that will be used by malign actors. An example: operational grants are not covered. That means this tool can still be used for foreign interference. 🎙️Alisa S. unpacks the second Recommendation on citizens and civil society engagement in policy-making processes. What are the topics? Citizen consultations, participatory exercises, protection of civic space, and tech to enhance interactions between governments and citizens. 💡 Read our latest on the topic: Our EDAP review ➡ https://lnkd.in/ewP3GU6b Our press release on the package ➡ https://lnkd.in/ekTfMFZ9

https://lnkd.in/gKvBcrqK The ICCL's "Rebalancing Europe" project sets out to redefine relationships within the EU, focusing principally upon concentrations of economic power and undoing them. This will certainly have a big impact on questions of digital privacy if there is even more refocus on citizen rights as a core value.

I will present insights on the impact of Government Open Source Funding in key areas such as EU policies and digital rights and values, standardization and sustainability. See you at the EU Open Source Policy Summit 2024 https://lnkd.in/g8bfJJBR #EUOpenSource

Europeans want decisive action against disinformation on the Internet | An insightful new study on #disinformation by my colleagues from the Bertelsmann Stiftung: Over 50% of #EU citizens want decisive action against online disinformation and nearly 90% think that both #tech companies should act. Healthy democratic discourse requires reliable information! Read the full study here: https://lnkd.in/g6v-M38R

📌 Ever wondered who funds European Political Parties? While public funds are the main source, private companies can also play a part 🇪🇺 Discover the new European Party Funding Observatory! 📊 Developed independently, the Observatory provides invaluable insights into the funding of European parties. It's a crucial resource for researchers, journalists, MEPs, and citizens seeking transparency in European democracy. 💡 How much funding do European parties receive? What's the breakdown between public and private funding? Explore the Observatory's data for a deeper understanding. 🔗https://epfo.eu/ 🔵 European political parties represent European citizens in our common institutions, find out how to influence their political manifestos:https://bit.ly/40G7XhY #Transparency #Democracy #EuropeanPolitics #EUelections #europeanelections

🇪🇺 Democratic innovation should be at the centre of European politics ! Particitiz is happy to join a broad range of democracy enthusiasts and advocates to support this call to prioritise Citizen Deliberation. By embracing deliberative democratic methods, the EU can not only enhance the legitimacy and effectiveness of decision-making but also nurture a sense of ownership and solidarity among citizens. Our common ask: 🔦 A clear vision for Citizen Deliberation: Embed citizen deliberation objectives in the EU’s 2024-2029 Strategic Agenda, ensuring they meet high quality standards and evaluation criteria to prevent 'citizen washing'. 🔁 Structural Integration of Deliberative Citizens’ Assemblies: Incorporate Citizens’ Assemblies into EU political processes, including on contentious issues. Institutionalise deliberative processes and create a permanent Citizens’ Assembly with a clear mandate. Create a horizontal DG or unit that is tasked to coordinate the work on citizen participation and deliberation. 🤝 Create the conditions for robust processes in all Member States: Invest in building deliberative capacity across the EU. Dedicate financial resources for communities that don’t have the opportunity to organise deliberative processes. We believe the next few months are a critical period in which to champion democratic innovation and citizen participation as central pillars of the European project. You as well? Then share this post and join us in calling the EU and the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024 for a firm commitment towards their citizens and our democracy! 📝 Read here the full letter : https://bit.ly/49YED9L #DeliberativeDemocracy #EU2024BE #CitizensAssemblies Thanks to the initiators: G1000 - Bureau Burgerberaad - DemNet Hungary (Foundation for Development of Democratic Rights) - DemocracyNext - Mehr Demokratie e.V. - Shipyard Foundation

Read the latest issue of our "Euresearch Info" to find out why European Partnerships play a pivotal role in achieving the EU's key political objectives. https://t.ly/VhAW4 #HorizonEU #SwissEUResearch #SwissEU4Innovation

🔍🌐Transparency is a key principle in the functioning of the EU institutions, but do they really operate transparently in all areas? Árpád LAPU, in his paper, presents the paradox of 'transparent opacity' in the decision-making of the European Parliament and the Council. Democracy and transparency are important, but the EU has room for improvement in this respect. 👉https://lnkd.in/d7TvYhqJ #FutureOfEurope #EU #transparency