D-CENT is an experimental project engaging large scale communities across Europe. It buildt digital tools for democracy and economic empowerment that solve real social problems. D-CENT tools are easy to use, privacy aware, and based on open standards and open source software. The EU-funded project started in October 2013 and ended in May 2016.
“You’re the generation that will change this country’s state of affairs and will build a different kind of democracy,” Manuela Carmena, mayor of Madrid.
“Protesting is not enough, we must transform the power structures,” Wikileak’s founder Julian Assange.
Organised on the 23–28 of May in Madrid, the Democratic Cities – Commons technology and the right to a democratic city event joined together close to 500 participants to talk, workshop, discuss and debate about network democracy, new forms of citizen participation, digital tools for democratic participation, and urban commons. The inspiring week and its sessions attracted close to 500 participants. It was also the final event of the D-CENT project, showcasing our results, tools and research.
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The global “Democratic Cities: Commons Technology and the Right to a Democratic City”, held in Madrid 23–28 May, produced a meaningful international dialogue between some of the world’s most outstanding players on issues surrounding technology, democracy and participation. Extracting Twitter data for hashtags #CiudadesDemocráticas, #DemocracyLab and #DCENTMadrid shapes a network that reveals vital details about the event. Read more +
This year the City of Helsinki is rethinking its approach to citizen participation and bottom-up citizen empowerment. The D-CENT project has impacted the roadmap of current e-participation tools in Helsinki by creating open processes, tools, code, and standards. The public beta of the democracy tool developed as part of the D-CENT Helsinki pilot has now been launched as Decisions Helsinki. Read more +
Text: Eva Rueda
“There is no democracy without privacy.” “Our personal information is the 21st century’s new oil and it needs protection and anonymity.” The international conference #DemocraticCities ended yesterday, after 35 speakers from around the world had shared projects, experiences, stories, and proposals on activism, participation, democracy, transparency, and privacy. Is it possible to build new ways to govern? “We are the future,” stated Birgitta Jónsdóttir, in a surprising, virtual closing for the event, “We are the Robin Hoods of power, the architects of change that will shape the world.” Organized by D-CENT Project and MediaLab Prado, an intense week of democratic and technological connections has come to an end, as the Cities for Change Network begins operating. Read more +
Writer: Eva Rueda
“I’m an older lady, an occasional politician. What’s a mayor? I’m just an ordinary citizen that happens to lead the city of Madrid.” Manuela Carmena, mayor of Madrid, and Wikileak’s founder Julian Assange gave the two keynote addresses at the “DemocraticCities” international conference that took place on Friday and Saturday at the Reina Sofia Museum. The meeting was organized by D-CENT Project, in cooperation with MediaLab-Prado. Paving the way for this event, the rest of the week we took part in #DemocracyLab, and sessions, presentations and workshops about direct democracy, citizen participation, commons networks and free software. Politics, technology, cities. Read more +
Writer: Eva Rueda
From the Hackathon for Democracy to D-CENT Project’s ground-breaking undertakings and the creation of Red de Comunes Democráticos (Democratic Commons Network), four days at MediaLab Prado were packed with sharing, surveying, debating, and suggesting ideas as to where the world is heading regarding direct democracy, citizen participation, commons networks, and open source software. Techno-politics, new urban models, social innovation, and apps and platforms to share and invigorate around #DemocracyLab. From tomorrow on, the event #DemocraticCities moves to the Reina Sofía with presentations by over 30 leading politicians and activists. Read more +
Writer: Eva Rueda
From Paris to Iceland, Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and Spain. Researchers, municipal technicians and activists from different countries have shared their new batch of direct democracy strategies, open source software, and citizen participation, in the context of Democracy Lab, at the Democratic Cities: Commons Technology and Right to a Democratic City gathering organized by the D-CENT Project and Madrid’s Town Council. Read more +
Writer: Eva Rueda
“The best open source tool is affectivity.” This isn’t an ordinary saying in an ordinary context. Its author, Diego, of the Todo por la Praxis collective, spoke at the session Urban Betas: Tools for an Open Source City that took place yesterday afternoon in #DemocracyLab, the international section of #DemocraticCities that is being held in MediaLab Prado. #DemocraticCities is a global gathering space that aims to improve democracy with open, collaborative technologies. Read more +
As part of the Democracy Lab that started on Monday in Madrid, we organise a two-day Unconference from Wednesday to Thursday (25-26 May). This event dives into Initiatives for open democracy and a decentralised Internet. Through an Open Call, we looked for groups and individuals to contribute to the sessions. Now we are very happy to introduce some of chosen participants! Read more +
The Democratic Cities – Commons technology and the right to a democratic city event is the biggest European event on network democracy, new forms of citizen participation, digital tools for democratic participation and urban commons for democratic cities. Organised on the 23–28 May, we expect 400+ academics, activists, politicians and hackers to attend in Madrid, Spain.
The event activities, spread to 6 days, are organised by a group of organisations working with direct democracy, citizen participation, and bottom-up initiatives. Read more +
