We contributed to a more open and participatory Europe through crowdsourcing methods
Through the European project “Inclusive Digitalisation in the EU (IDEU)”, our main goal was to enable citizens to shape the future of Europe’s digital transformation. A future that “leaves no one behind”.
To achieve this, seven organizations from across Europe collaborated and sought citizens’ opinions, suggestions, and concerns through a participatory crowdsourcing process. The participating countries – Spain, Germany, Belgium, Croatia, Bulgaria, and Romania – were chosen for their diversity in historical, economic, and digital terms.
Through this project, more than 2,300 citizens from these countries shared their views on the European Union’s digital transformation policies.
Our main objectives were:
- Helping citizens understand how EU policies are shaped and how they can participate in decision-making.
- Enabling citizens to propose solutions for the transition to the digital age, influencing policy-making processes at a local, national, and European level.
- Increasing knowledge about crowdsourcing, a method that can make democracy more open and participatory, leveraging technology for citizen input into decision-making processes.
With Inclusive Digitalisation in the EU (IDEU), we brought citizens to the forefront and contributed to a fairer, more democratic digital transformation for all.
Funding
The Inclusive Digitalisation in the EU (IDEU) project is co-funded by the European Commission’s Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme (Grant number 101147200)
Funded by the European Union. However, the views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) alone and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor the EACEA can be held responsible for them.
We contributed to a more open and participatory Europe through crowdsourcing methods
The digital divide in the EU is widening, particularly affecting women, people with disabilities, low-income groups, and the elderly population.
The countries involved in the project show varying levels of digital progress, highlighting the need for specific solutions relevant to local circumstances. For example, while Spain ranks high in digitalization (7th place), Bulgaria and Romania lag behind (26th and 27th place). Furthermore, gender inequalities in digital skills persist in all six countries.
With the project “Inclusive Digitalisation in the EU (IDEU)”, we addressed these challenges:
- Raising stakeholders’ awareness of digital transformation policies and expectations at a European, national, and local level.
- Providing citizens with a platform to co-shape inclusive digital policies.
- Ensuring diversity, equality, inclusion, and accessibility in digital policymaking.
- Strengthening local partnerships with policymaker bodies to create institutions for participatory decision-making.
- Supporting the integration of citizen-driven proposals into the EU’s digital transformation agenda.
We contributed to a more open and participatory Europe through crowdsourcing methods
The project results are:
- Citizen participation: 2,300+ citizens from 6 countries shared their opinions on European Union digital transformation policies.
- Creation of a mechanism for collecting opinions: Construction of a crowdsourcing platform.
- Policy impact: Develop and present recommendations to local and national decision-makers to ensure digital inclusion.
- Awareness-building: Αwareness-raising campaigns to educate the public and stakeholders on digital policies.
- Monitoring framework: Create a citizen-driven framework for tracking digital transformation progress at local and national levels.
- Institutional engagement: Establish sustainable collaborations with local authorities, demonstrating the value of crowdsourcing in policymaking.
- Best practice sharing: Organization of events and online training modules to disseminate knowledge about crowdsourcing and policy making.
- Strengthening citizen participation: Empowering EU stakeholders in digital participation, encouraging innovation in policy-making with citizens at the center.
