The project runs over a period of 36 months and has been active for 15 months. The initial historical review entailed the engagement of 18 interviewed experts, who are recognised international leaders in democratic innovation and inclusive participation and engagement. Extensive scoping literature reviews were conducted to compile an appraisal of civic participation and engagement toward sustainable solutions. This led to the development of a timeline and open database of sustainability-related and inclusive participation and engagement practices in Europe since the early days of digitalisation. The following advanced quantitative analysis of the European Social Survey provided an overview of citizens’ attitudes toward democracy and political participation, presenting trends over time and variations across countries and socio-demographic groups. The research into 15 case studies, involving 158 interviewed individuals, enabled a comparison of different forms and mechanisms of participation and engagement, and the involvement of more vulnerable citizens and communities in democratic life. Furthermore, the first version of the dialogue tool, an agent-based model social simulation tool, was developed and tested with stakeholders and citizens, supported by a video and tutorial. The new Democracy Labs methodology developed by the consortium was presented in a toolkit and successfully tested in three countries with a diverse group of citizens and stakeholders, who cocreated new principles, procedures, and spaces for imagined democratic innovations. The upcoming research and innovation activities will include the implementation of the Democracy Labs in three more countries, the analysis of the results of cocreation into final design products, their wider validation through a European choice experiment, and feasibility testing with policymakers. These activities will lead towards the development of policy roadmaps and dialogues on inclusive civic participation and engagement for sustainability.
