Eight Questions to Ask Before Using AI in Citizen Participation
AI hype has arrived in the realm of digital citizen participation. For many, it’s an exciting moment, with several potential applications already emerging. But the quick uptake of AI also raises questions about the potential risks the technology brings with it. What questions should you ask before adopting the technology in participation projects?
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Participatory Budgeting Voting Methods
Most participatory budgets follow a well-established format. Yet when it comes to choosing the most effective voting method, there’s still no clear consensus. We take a look at some of the best options.
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Authenticity and Engagement – 6 Methods for Verifying Participants
Verifying the identity of participants is one of the most crucial steps in digital participation - validating outcomes and giving credibility to projects more broadly. However the balance between authenticity and ease of engagement makes it tough to get right. Here are a few of the options out there, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.
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Four Alternative Social Media Platforms for Political Organisations
With apparent chaos over at Twitter and a general loss of interest in Facebook, the status-quo of the social media world has seen a bit of a shakeup in recent months. Political organisations might find themselves looking for another place to grow an audience. We thought we'd take a look at a few of the alternatives.
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Democratic Lottery – A Guide to Sortition
According to some experts, ‘Sortition’ could eventually replace elected politicians altogether. In reality, it is already in use alongside elections – quietly revolutionising the way political decisions are made. But what exactly is it?
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6 Participation Tools That Use AI
A number of Democracy technology platforms are taking advantage of the recent boom in AI to introduce new features and enhance existing ones. Here's a look at some great examples.
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Making Political Primaries More Democratic
Can alternative voting methods help to make political primaries more democratic, while also reducing the risk posed by polarising candidates?
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Doing Deliberative Democracy Right
What does good practice in deliberative democracy and open government look like, in practice? Democracy Technologies took the OECD’s 11 point checklist of Good Practice Principles and checked them against the Barcelona Youth Forum.
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Six Advantages of Digital Citizen Participation
What does it take to get more citizens involved in democratic processes? Participation Factory outlines the key benefits of using digital tools to boost the breadth and quality of citizen participation while optimising valuable resources.
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4 Common Myths About Digital Participation
Based on lessons learned in Ghana's Shama District - Participation Factory shares insights about common myths about digital participation and what expectations it can and can’t fulfil
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Delegative Democracy: An Introduction
Confusing terminology aside, we need to talk about the delegation of political authority, why it’s a big deal, and how it could impact political participation as democracy goes digital.
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The Underestimated Impact of School Participatory Budgeting
Participatory budgets (PBs) are usually open for the entire community to take part in – but there can be real advantages to starting with a smaller-scale school participatory budget.
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What Is Systematic Participation and Why Should You Care?
Systematic Participation is a new approach to community engagement that goes beyond ad-hoc projects. Despite an increase in participatory budgeting and other participatory initiatives, participation efforts of local governments often fall short due to insufficient planning and inadequate infrastructure.
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Digital Tools to Help Political Parties
Democracy technologies aren't just for managing deliberative and participatory processes, they can also be used to build, manage and grow political parties. Here are a few examples of tools that might help.
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4 Common Administrative Hurdles to Digital Participation
Successful participation projects are about engaging your community. But they also require you to get your own administration on your side – which is not always all that simple.
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