In June we were delighted to welcome Alex Hrabinová to our office in Edinburgh to begin a three-month internship, which was enabled by the Erasmus+ programme. Having now returned home to Slovakia, we asked Alex to reflect on her time
Event Alert: Democracy in action? – The Place of Referendums in Scotland and the UK
The referendum is, in theory, one of the best democratic instruments around. One person, one vote. Direct Democracy in action. Look at Switzerland! However, when we look at referendums in more detail, we can be exposed to a very different
Mentoring for democratic innovation – a new way of working?
Democratic innovation can sometimes be challenging because people underestimate what it takes to run a successful process, but with strategic support these processes can be much easier to grasp, and with more confidence, much easier to deliver. In a recent
Helping parliaments get closer to the people they represent
By Andy Williamson A key challenge for those trying to engage a broader public in parliamentary democracy is that the processes often appear closed and opaque (because, often, they are). The language is off-putting, the procedures cumbersome and unfriendly, and
Free but not that free: Is forcing citizens to exercise their democratic rights fundamentally illiberal?
Guest blogger Jane Zacharzewski on discussions about compulsory voting in Belgium. Last month, Belgium’s Movement Réformateur (MR) held their annual conference. As a liberal and conservative party within the French speaking community, MR prides itself on its fundamental liberal traditions,
Recommendations for improving online consultations
How can the experience of online consultations, as run by central government, be improved? This was the broad question that Demsoc and Snook were tasked with exploring as part of a six-week discovery phase project for the Government Digital Service.
How do we take back control?
Digital democracy & democratic deficit in the EU The Democratic Society are working on a project to find out how people would like to communicate ideas directly to the institutions of the European Union. It’s about citizens feeding in to
Religion, Migration, Power and Money
The tale of two Athens hotels, the 5-star and the refugee camp. Religion, Migration, Power and Money was the title of last month’s Athens Democracy Forum. The conference was sponsored by some Big Names, it attracted important people to come and
Vacancy – Digital Democratic Engagement Officer
The Democratic Society is recruiting a Digital Democratic Engagement Officer to support our Participatory Budgeting work in Scotland. This is initially a six month contract based at our office in Edinburgh, Scotland. Full information, including the application process, is outlined in the job description below. The
DemsocMCR Launch Event Summary
Last week we launched Demsoc Manchester, our new hub that compliments the work we’re already doing in Brighton, Edinburgh and Brussels. Thanks to everyone who came along and contributed to an interesting and lively discussion. In case you couldn’t make