European Democracy Shield

It is important that the Democracy Shield is not merely a wall built around a status quo with which citizens are unhappy. Building trust in the effectiveness of politics and in citizens’ own agency is essential. These are the main conclusions of a NETS4DEM policy retreat, which discussed the topic of the European Democracy Shield in some detail in autumn 2024.

Participants had some concerns that the language of shielding is one that inherently promotes a defensive attitude around a status quo with which (according to election results and opinion polling) the public are not completely content.

Our work in projects at local level and European level shows that democratic innovation is well accepted and welcomed by participants and by those who hear about opportunities to participate. It helps them to understand that citizen voices are more important than commercial or private sector interests. Certain forms of democratic innovation can have measurable effects on decreasing polarisation and increase levels of citizen's trust in both each other and public institutions.

There is evidence at local levels of governance that democratic innovations can enable more inclusive, robust and ultimately effective policies and their delivery.

Participation is also increasingly being mainstreamed into long term planning and decision making at local level, and research exists that there is an emerging trend amongst policymakers (at a national level) that these innovations can bolster the democratic resilience of democratic institutions.

The evaluation of the Conference on the Future of Europe, which NETS4DEM is following up, also showed high satisfaction with participation as an experience, even at the European level where issues are more abstract.

Democracy is shielded from external threats when European societies and institutions are strengthened through increased democratic engagement by citizens – something that can be sparked by participatory/democratic innovations.

For this reason, we believe that innovation and modernisation projects should make up a significant part of the European Democracy Shield package.

The participation of citizens in public deliberation and discourse is an essential part of politics, but it is difficult to check the bona fides of citizens when they are part of a broad participatory exercise. Quality controls both on the questions asked and on methods of recruitment can support fair process and prevent actors with an interest in a particular outcome from skewing the question or the discussion in such a way that it favours their pre-arranged position. Measures and funding that support capacity building in governments and in civil society actors at local level can provide an essential underpinning infrastructure and can support local action that counters populist narratives of elitism in institutions.

A quality mark or standard before deliberative exercises can be used as evidence in European processes, working with the JRC’s expertise, and accompanied by iterative development of evaluation feeding back into the standards. Based on OECD or European standards, and applying to deliberation exercises, such measures would prevent the creation of fake participatory processes, where the question, the process or the recruitment is seriously skewed, either to invalidate the results of authentic processes, or to give the veneer of legitimacy to a political communications exercise. (DEMNET reference?)

• Designate participation officers in every DG. - Establish an obligation to consider citizen perspectives amongst high level policymakers in the EC's Code of Good Administrative Behaviour.


• Ensure that DG Regio fund distribution to local regions and states are consistently and formally made conditional on the use of high-standard participatory policymaking methods. And where appropriate to establish governance structures over the long-term. This should affect at least: the European Regional Development Fund, the Cohesion Fund, and the Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession (ISPA).


• Provide a platform at across European Institutions for other citizens assemblies on battling disinformation (in Germany and Serbia) or running a new one.


• EDS as vehicle for reinventing civic education to safeguard and strengthen European democracy from the inside civic education also outside the classrooms, participatory processes as a measure for citizenship education (citizenship in practice, enhancing collective spirit, sense of ownership...)

Add your comments, research evidence, project outcomes and reports in the comments section.