Reinventing European democracy: a path to regeneration
From local initiatives to transnational cities assemblies and research projects, Europe is testing new paths to counter its democracy crisis. Collaborative efforts to revive participatory imagination are multiplying, yet experts warn: safeguarding democracy will demand more than institutional fixes. A soft revolution is urgently needed
By Gioia Salvatori
Western democracy is going through a deep crisis: the warning signs are multiplying, coming one after another from different fronts: voter turnout, trust in the press and institutions, opinion polls. Some of these signals are predictable, others unexpected. The list is long and here are just a few examples: in the 2024 European Elections, Croatia recorded a staggering abstention rate, the lowest turnout in the EU (21,35 %), with Lithuania and Bulgaria close behind. In France, local elections in 2020 saw an unprecedented six out of every ten citizens abstaining in the second round. This growing skepticism is rooted not only in voter fatigue but in recent traumas and upheavals for the European project. The Eurozone debt crisis, unleashed in the wake of the Lehman Brothers collapse in 2007–2008, nearly fractured monetary union: Greece's sovereign debt exploded, and popular backlash threatened a forced exit from the euro. An era of austerity emerged as confidence in the welfare State, already weakened, evaporated. Political disillusionment climaxed in 2016 with Brexit: the United Kingdom's referendum saw a 72% turnout. Meanwhile, Europeans are also withdrawing from traditional journalism as a civic arena. Only 49% of EU citizens say they trust public television or radio for news. Younger audiences increasingly turn to online platforms, yet trust is fractured across all channels.
Kalypso Nicolaïdis, Chair in Global Affairs at the School of Transnational Governance (EUI) and Emeritus professor at Oxford University, describes the loss of trust in democratic institutions: "In the last 10 to 15 years, it has become increasingly visible with the Euro crisis, then the refugee crisis and then COVID. Our democracies have been captured on two fronts: on one hand by technocratic disconnect from citizens and, on the other hand, by the new oligarchy of corporations, what some refer to as techno-monarchism".
These trends: abstention, economic trauma, political rupture or fading trust in media reveal a new European landscape. Something big has changed compared with the post World War II scenario: "The whole history of the last two centuries of democracy is a struggle: each time the suffrage is extended to more and more people, we see resistance by the elites in power. The balancing of that logic of cautious incremental expansion of suffrage, has been the creation and expansion of the welfare state: people were able to trust democracy because it enabled prosperity to be shared. But as global financial capitalism expanded in the 80s, and especially in the 90s, financial flows hugely deepened inequality and precarity among the less privileged and the middle class. People can't trust a system that delivers such inequality and precarity. A soft revolution is needed, and very soon", Nicolaïdis says.
ScaleDem project was set-up in response: a collaborative effort to revive democratic imagination and reconnect citizens across these fractured spaces. The European Union has funded numerous democracy-related research projects over the last decade, motivated by "vital threats to European democracies," such as disinformation, attacks on the rule of law, low voter turnout. In this respect, ScaleDem's mission is to "look at the different solutions that these projects have formulated and try to scale them," explains Camille Dobler, Head of Research at Missions Publiques and coordinator of the ScaleDem project. The initiative focuses on solutions that enhance citizens' inclusion in decision-making processes. These include petitions, local referendums, new mechanisms for representation, and especially deliberative approaches such as citizen assemblies. However, as Dobler emphasises, "scaling a process, scaling a democratic innovation, requires a very holistic approach; it's not like scaling a technology startup!" Overcoming barriers is needed and they might vary somewhat from one region of Europe to another.
How can this be managed? Dobler proposes a new scaling framework centered on four dimensions: scaling out (replicating innovations in new locations), scaling up (influencing policymaking), scaling in (improving effectiveness and deepening internal practices), and scaling deep (fostering cultural and mindset transformation in society). While this framework is only the theoretical starting up of the project, testing it is the real challenge: the project team is currently reviewing over 300 innovative projects to select the most promising ones. "We are looking for solutions that empower people, as having a lasting impact is our primary goal," Dobler says.
As in ancient times: the city as the cradle of democracy
The city, the cradle of democracy, offers a natural starting point for empowerment. Dobler recalls a participatory experience in Paris: "We are living in very atomised societies where people are alone, also behind the screen. I was in Paris facilitating a deliberative citizen assembly and one participant told me 'it's insane: in 20 years, I haven't talked to my neighbours. And here I come and in five hours, I've made 100 friends from all over France, because I was given the time, the space to speak with them'". While launching democratic innovation in cities is the most accessible and natural path, the need for political understanding and participation today extends well beyond the urban scale, reaching across the entire continent.
Beyond cities: European scale democracy
How do we enable citizens to feel truly part of the European project? The Democratic Odyssey, recognised as the first genuine transnational citizens' assembly in Europe, offers an inspiring example. This initiative brings together randomly selected participants from multiple countries to deliberate on urgent European issues, ensuring broad representation and inclusiveness. The assembly has convened in Athens, Florence, and Vienna. "It should inspire national and European governments and institutions to establish a truly diverse and representative citizens' board engaged at all times" says Stefan Sindelar, CEO of the European Capital of Democracy (ECoD), based in Vienna. Stefan Sindelar supports the idea of starting from cities but reaching outwards: "Citizens can and should be involved at every level, including in the major strategic decisions Europe faces. But we need to start somewhere. This starting point goes back to the earliest human settlements, when communities needed to organise themselves and create rules for living together in confined spaces."
During the Democratic Odyssey, for example, topics such as the pandemic, migration, and climate change were deliberated upon by assemblies composed of 50% regional participants and 50% Europeans from across the continent. Supported by translators and facilitators who understand the complexities and limits of each assembly, participants produced shared recommendations. Although scaling such a process across Europe is challenging, the initiative demonstrated it is achievable. Stefan Sindelar affirms: "Trans-European knowledge exchange and co-creation can be a solution, even for complex topics," emphasising that involving citizens from the outset strengthens both the legitimacy and quality of decisions. The ultimate goal for Stefan Sindelar should be to ensure the longevity of the European project to live in peace and prosperity as we have after WWII in large parts of Europe.
Looking to 2050: Safeguarding Europe's Democratic Future
The question facing all of us is how to build a democracy fit for future generations whose distrust in institutions is growing together with disinformation, economic inequality, ongoing demographic shifts, and transnational threats like climate change. As experts point out, safeguarding democracy in 2050 will demand more than institutional fixes; it will require sustained investment in civic education, reforms for institutional transparency and effectiveness. And resiliency, of course, for creating a democracy that thrives amid difficulties instead of dying. "These growing pathologies of our democracy should heighten our sense that we need to do all we can to push them back, invent and implement new democratic practices that can inspire citizens to renew their commitment and trust in the collective action through their State, local councils or through civil society initiatives", urges Nicolaïdis.
ScaleDem—Grounding Democratic Innovations for Real-World Impact
Learn more
- Website: ScaleDem
- LinkedIn: scaledem-project
- Bluesky: scaledem.bsky.social
- Contacts: info@scaledem.eu
Provided by iCube Programme
