ECoD is scaling democratic innovations – with SCALEDEM!
In recent years, over 300 transnational projects have fostered democratic innovations—whether participatory, digital, or deliberative—bringing together researchers, civil society organisations, and public authorities. Yet, despite these efforts, the scalability and political impact of these innovations remain uncertain. Launched on December 5 2024, the Horizon Europe EU-funded SCALEDEM project supports the adoption and scaling of democratic innovations to foster more inclusive and participatory governance. In 2026, two open calls will provide funding and support for real-life experimentation, ensuring these innovations have a lasting impact.
SCALEDEM bridges this gap by ensuring that democratic innovations move beyond experimental projects and achieve meaningful, widespread adoption. Our approach helps researchers, practitioners, and policymakers identify opportunities and challenges for scaling democratic innovations across four key dimensions:
> Scaling High – Influencing laws and policy
> Scaling Out – Reaching more and new people
> Scaling Deep – Transforming cultures and identities
> Scaling In – Enhancing the quality of democratic processes
Comprehensive Infrastructure
To ensure the widespread adoption of democratic innovations, SCALEDEM is developing a comprehensive infrastructure with several key tools:
A Knowledge Map (Nets4Dem) – A centralised resource compiling insights on democratic innovations, making them easily accessible.
The Translation Hub – A space dedicated to transforming research into concrete political action. This hub nurtures a global community of over 500 end-users, including researchers, civil society organisations, policymakers, practitioners, science communicators, and cultural institutions. Open to all, it fosters collaboration and knowledge-sharing.
Two Scaling Grounds – Testing the replicability of innovations in new contexts. In 2026, we will financially support and oversee the implementation of more than 13 democratic innovations, engaging over 39 third parties through open calls.
Three Strategic Partnerships
SCALEDEM strengthens its impact through collaborations with:
> The European Capital of Democracy City Network (ECoD)
> The Network for Innovative Solutions for the Future of Democracy (Nets4Dem)
> The DemoReset Network
The European Capital of Democracy (ECoD) is privileged to be part of this transformative project alongside a distinguished consortium of partners from across Europe and beyond. Together, we are committed to scaling democratic innovations, ensuring they thrive in diverse contexts, and strengthening participatory governance.
For more information on the SCALEDEM project, you can visit https://scaledem.eu/ , as well as our official press release at https://cop-demos.jrc.ec.europa.eu/blog/new-project-tackle-challenge-scaling-democratic-innovations
If you are interested in joining us in tackling the challenge of scaling democratic innovations, feel free to contact Stefan Sindelar.
Project details
Duration: 1 December 2024 – 31 May 2028
Financed: Horizon Europe
Consortium:
– Missions Publiques (MP) – France
– European University Institute (EUI) – Italy
– Dublin City University (DCU) – Ireland
– Research Institute for Sustainability – Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam (RIFS-GFZ) – Germany
– ifok GmbH (IFOK) – Germany
– European Capital of Democracy (ECoD) – Austria
– Democracy X (Danish Board of Technology Foundation) – Denmark
– Nexus Institut (NEXUS) – Germany
– Fondazione ICONS (ICONS) – Italy
– GLOBSEC (GLOBSEC) – Slovakia
– Université Catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain) – Belgium
– Democracy Reporting International (DRI) – Germany
– Extituto de Política Abierta (EX) – Colombia