Manual on Digital Civil Participation Tools: now available online

The main deliverable of the project, the Manual on Digital Civic Participation tools is now available. During the project’ lifecycle the consortium, having implemented successfully a wide range of activities, young people and Municipal Employees exploited the existing digital tools on a national and European level but also the ways and opportunities for their applicability in their cities and others in the European Union.
This Manual is the final tangible result of the project “D.C.P. v.2.0.” and its’ activities. It has been co-developed by the consortium of the project and it targets a variety of goals, including:
Understanding the Concept:
The manual aims to help readers gain a comprehensive understanding of Digital Participatory Tools and their significance in various contexts. It provides clear and concise explanations of the concept, ensuring that readers grasp the fundamental principles and purposes of these tools.
Empowering Participation:
One of the primary goals of the manual is to empower individuals and communities to actively participate in decision-making processes using digital tools. By explaining the functionalities and benefits of these tools, readers can better engage in collaborative efforts and contribute meaningfully to their communities.
Facilitating Practical Implementation:
Beyond theoretical knowledge, the manual seeks to provide practical guidance on how to implement Digital Participatory Tools effectively. It offers instructions, best practices, and real-world tips to support readers in using these tools efficiently.
Promoting Ethical Considerations:
The manual emphasizes the importance of ethical considerations when using Digital Participatory Tools. It raises awareness about potential challenges, such as data privacy, inclusivity, and power dynamics, and encourages responsible and inclusive practices.
Inspiring Innovation:
The manual serves as a source of inspiration for individuals and organizations seeking innovative solutions for community engagement and problem-solving. It highlights successful case studies and encourages readers to think creatively about how they can adapt these tools to their specific needs.
Boosting Digital Literacy:
In today’s digital age, digital literacy is essential. The manual contributes to enhancing readers’ digital literacy by introducing them to new tools and technologies, thereby improving their overall technological proficiency.
Creating Social Impact:
Ultimately, the manual’s educational goals revolve around creating a positive social impact. It aims to empower individuals and communities to utilize Digital Participatory Tools effectively, fostering inclusive decision-making processes and driving positive change at various levels.
Through achieving these educational goals, this manual on Digital Participatory Tools aims to be a valuable resource for anyone seeking to harness the potential of digital tools for participatory and collaborative purposes.
This Manual includes information derived through the activities implemented in the framework of the project.
All of the consortium’s partners contributed in their way in developing the present document, through providing the key findings, and the material developed in said activities as well as researching and guiding the participants in thsi exploration of “Digital Participation”. More specifically, the follow activities were implemented by the consortium:
- Local Data Gathering/Needs Analysis
Initially, the partners performed a survey disseminated to their local communities with a dual objective:
- Perform a data gathering/needs analysis in each partner municipality on the availability and use of e-participation tools, as well as the needs of local citizens
- To analyze, monitor and research existing tools and methods of civic e-participation
The results from over 200 people were structured into reports portraying the local situation on the topic.
Later on, between September and November 2022, the partners organized 10 workshops with a total duration of 30 hours and with a total participation of 284 young people, aiming to analyze the existing digital participation tools applied in each partner country/municipality.
2. 1st International Conference
This International 4-hour Event 4 hours gathered 55 participants from 5 participating countries. Its main goal was to identify, map and analyze the digital tools used in the member states of the European Union and the exchange of opinions and experiences on the tools they use in their local/national realities for digital civic participation.
Through working groups and international cooperation, the participants contributed to the development of an initial draft for the present Manual, which just started taking its form!
3. National Workshops for Young People & Municipal Employees
Between January and May 2023, the consortium implemented 10 workshops in total with a total participation of more than 100 Young People and Municipal Employees. The workshops featured experts and guest speakers who shared their insights on digital participation, its potential to enhance democracy, and the challenges and opportunities that come with it. Participants engaged in lively and informative discussions, exploring various use cases of digital tools and found out about uses that they didn’t know before.
The goal achieved during this set of activities was the empowerment of both young citizens and municipal employees on e-participation tools and concepts such as e-democracy, participatory approaches for local governance.
4. Young People’s Hackathon
The second International Event of our Project took the form of a Young People’s Hackathon, where 55 young participants and representatives from municipalities of Greece, Poland, Lithuania, Romania, and Italy gathered in Athens for a great learning experience.
The two days’ event included discussions and speeches
Digital Civic Participation v.2.0. – D.C.P. v2.0 is a project funded under the CERV Programme of the European Commission. It’s citizen-oriented, equality-promoting, forward-looking, and constructive, while being more engaging for the younger generation in particular as this is one of the 2 main target groups besides the municipal employees.
The structure of the project provides organizations and municipalities the possibility to deepen and intensify their cooperation and debate in a long-term perspective, to develop sustainable networks and to outline their long-term vision for the future of European integration through increased civic participation.
D.C.P v2.0 explores the relationship between digitally enabled participatory tools and democracy, including such dimensions as citizen demand, state power, collective action, and mobilization.
This project aims at innovating the civic educational process resulting in increased participation of young people in their communities.
As part of this innovation, a user-friendly manual will be developed, which will gather and present a collection of known e-participation tools, with practical examples to enhance civic participation.
In conclusion, the project attempts to assess whether investing in digital tools to enhance participation during COVID-19 is appropriate. One consideration is whether their use, post-pandemic, will maintain or extend audience participation
A snapshot of the Manual
It is almost impossible to define digital democracy precisely.
It essentially involves bringing democratic processes to the online world. But to what extent does it complete the existing formal processes and to what extent does it encourage and promote the active participation levels?
Digital democracy is frequently associated with concepts like public crowdsourcing and collective intelligence (knowledge of the crowd). Public consultation entails involving a group of individuals by enticing them to leave comments, exchange knowledge, and collaborate on a problem
A kind of communal intelligence is produced by fusing different arguments and ideas, frequently with the use of technology. In other words We are smarter as a group.
Utilizing collective intelligence is when a large group of people can accomplish more than the sum of their efforts.
By giving people more direct and interactive ways to participate, digital democracy makes use of the collective intelligence of the population.
By voting on a proposal they favor or initiatives they want to support, for example, people can directly participate in decision-making processes. The chance to collectively develop novel solutions by exchanging ideas and arguments is also provided by digital democracy.
The process of establishing this kind of public input is known as “deliberative democracy” Information gathering, consultation, and argumentation are essential to this.
Due to the necessity for urgent, flexible decisions during the COVID-19 crisis, regulatory power has substantially shifted toward the government and local authorities, thus creating an imbalance of societal representation in political decision-making. Meaningful participation is critical when it comes to achieving socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable outcomes.