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Network for Citizen Participation and Deliberation in Europe
The Network in Brief
September 2026
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The Network for Citizen Participation and Deliberation in Europe brings together insights, opportunities, and projects shared by members every two months.
In the coming months, three network members will organize Citizens’ Assemblies on spatial planning, democratic resilience, and public finances. This fall also features a busy calendar of events organized by different actors in our network – including our own FIDE Forum in Vienna – plus new publications on the impact of AI on citizen participation.
Feel free to forward this to colleagues. If you have something to share before the next issue, reply to this email, and we will hold it for the next edition.
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Deliberative & Participatory Processes
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8th Citizens’ Assembly of the permanent citizens’ dialogue of the Parliament of the German-speaking Community of Belgium⤴
The assembly began on September 12. From that date onwards, thirty citizens, selected by lot, will meet across five Saturdays to deliberate on spatial planning and formulate recommendations for the Parliament. All relevant meeting documentation, recommendations, and implementation details will be updated on the website as the process progresses.
Shared by Nicole De Palmenaer, Advisor for European Affairs, Regional Development and Democratic Participation, Parlement des DG (Ostbelgien), Belgium
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European citizens’ panel on democratic resilience⤴
The panel is part of the Democracy Shield’s strategic measures presented by the European Commission in 2025 to address growing threats to democracy. It will bring together 150 randomly selected citizens from across all 27 EU member states to discuss what could help citizens and communities take part in democratic life and strengthen societal resilience. The final recommendations will feed directly into the Commission’s work and help the EU and its member states design actions for citizens’ needs. The sessions will take place across three weekends between September and November, posing key questions on how to make our democracies stronger. Further details on the process and online debate opportunities are available on the European Commission's Citizens’ Engagement Platform.
Shared by Gaëtane Ricard-Nihoul, Deputy Head of Unit, Directorate-General for Communication, Citizens' Dialogues Unit, EU Commission.
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New French national Citizens’ Convention on public finances⤴
The CESE president announced on September 8 a new Citizens’ Convention on public finances. 150 citizens will be reunited to hear from experts and stakeholders, debate, and formulate proposals for France’s major budgetary trajectories. More info will be shared in the upcoming months.
Shared by Aurelia Gay, CESE (Conseil Économique Social et Environnemental)
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How is AI changing citizen participation? A hands-on workshop
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Following the launch of the OECD and Bertelsmann Stiftung report, Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Citizen Participation, this hands-on session brings practitioners together to work through what the research means in practice. The workshop will be built around facilitated breakout groups, each led by a practitioner sharing how they've used these tools in their own context. Different approaches and shared challenges will be compared to gather concrete, applicable ideas.
Organized by People Powered, the OECD, and Bertelsmann Stiftung.
Shared by Stefan Roch, Project Manager, Bertelsmann Stiftung
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Democracy needs a budget line:
A conversation on funding participation and the next EU budget
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As funding for democracy is becoming more precarious, what should the next EU budget do to respond? The European Commission has proposed to allocate only 0.5% of the total budget to democratic resilience, a figure that contradicts the claim that democracy is a strategic priority. Together with Alliance4Europe, we have developed a position paper with nine recommendations for strengthening democratic resilience in the EU’s 2028–2034 budget. We’ll unpack the key recommendations and discuss what shrinking funding means for deliberative democracy, civil society and local governments. Speakers from across the field will also share their perspectives and experiences.
Register here
Read the position paper
Shared by Yves Dejaghere, Executive Director, FIDE Europe
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October 12 - 13 · Paris, France
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OECD Global Forum on building trust and reinforcing democracy
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The Forum will bring together open government and civic space leaders to strengthen public trust using the OECD’s Government Unstuck Agenda. A series of side events adjacent to the Forum’s plenary sessions will also be organized. The complete program is available at the link above. Online registration is compulsory to attend.
A series of side events will also be organized.
Main event registration
Side event registration
Shared by Ollin Perez- Reynaud, Policy Analyst, OECD.
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November 4 to 6 · Brussels, Belgium
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Citizen participation and deliberative democracy festival
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The Joint Research Centre is organizing a gathering of diverse practitioners to work on citizen engagement across Europe. This year’s focus will be the role of participatory and deliberative processes in democratic resilience. Particular attention will be given to the aftermath of the European Commission's adoption of the European Democracy Shield.
Registration is now open
Shared by Yves Dejaghere, Executive Director, FIDE Europe.
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November 18 - 19 · Vienna, Austria
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FIDE Forum 2026 updates⤴
Thank you to everyone who contributed. We’ve received an impressive range of thoughtful and high-quality workshop proposals. The sessions have now been selected, and we’re currently finalizing the detailed program.
Next week, we are announcing the full program and opening workshop registrations. If you want to secure your spot in your preferred workshop, register now!
FIDE Forum is a conference for practitioners, public officials, political parties, NGOs, and funders to move this field from the margins to the mainstream: to build the infrastructure, lift the standards, and create the political will to make it permanent.
Register now to join us in Vienna
Shared by Yves Dejaeghere, Executive Director, FIDE Europe
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November 23 - 25 · Dijon , France
November 26 - 27 · Online
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Les rencontres européennes de la participation⤴
The 10th edition is organized by Décider Ensemble, and over three days will gather international practitioners to discuss under the theme: “Deciding together: a realistic promise?” It will feature workshops, networking sessions, exhibition stands, and urban walks focused on building collective democratic responses to political extremism, power concentration, and disinformation.
An online session will also take place.
Register here
Shared by Yves Dejaeghere, Executive Director, FIDE Europe
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Observation report on the 7th Citizens’ Assembly of the permanent citizens’ dialogue in East Belgium⤴
Compiled by researchers at UCLouvain (Cecilia Baglietto, Christoph Niessen, Pieter Velghe, and Min Reuchamps), this report analyzes the 7th Citizens' Assembly across three dimensions: input (composition and topic selection), throughput (deliberation and decision-making), and output (recommendations and their implementation). It includes observations and recommendations for each of these areas.
Note that the publication is only available in German.
Shared by De Palmeaner Nicole,
Advisor for European affairs, regional development and democratic participation,
Parlement des DG (Ostbelgien), Belgium.
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Artificial intelligence and the future of citizen participation⤴
Developed by the OECD in collaboration with the Bertelsmann Stiftung, this report analyzes 50 real-world use cases from 22 countries and outlines nine practical AI applications for citizens' participation. It offers a reference point for understanding where AI can add value and where safeguards are needed to keep core democratic tasks in human hands.
A policy brief is also available, translating the report’s findings into an accessible format for policymakers and practitioners. It is a useful starting point for anyone exploring how AI can support without compromising trust or democratic accountability.
Read the policy brief
Shared by Stefan Roch, Project Manager, Bertelsmann Stiftung
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Founded by FIDE and Bertelsmann Stiftung
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