PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

CONTENTEDITORIAL 3

I. WHAT’S THE DEMOCRACY LAB? 5 Interview with Hanno Burmester 8

II. OUR TOPICS & PARTNERS 10 1. Highlights of the Democracy Lab 10 2. Our topics 12 3. Our partners 13

III. OUR FLAGSHIP PROJECTS 14 1. Reviving Representative Democracy 14 2. Political participation of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds 16 3. “Learning Journey” - Democracy in the professional world 18

IV. THE DEMOCRACY LAB’S ANNUAL HIGHLIGHT: THE INNOCRACY CONFERENCE 21

V. FURTHER PROJECTS 26 1. Democratic Innovation Dinners 27 2. Challenging Democracy Roundtables 28

VI. THE DEMOCRACY LAB IN THE NEWS 29 Keynotes & Discussions 30

VII. THE TEAM BEHIND THE DEMOCRACY LAB 32

About the Democracy Lab & Das Progressive Zentrum 34

Publishing information 35

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Dear readers,

In April 2017, we launched the Democracy Lab. The Lab is a space within the inde-

pendent think tank Das Progressive Zentrum dedicated to the future of democracy and democratic innovations. We created the Democracy Lab as a place for thinkers and do-ers to gather, network and think about new ideas for politics and civil society.

Our motivation to create this innovative plat-form came after the turbulent year 2016, with the election of Trump as US President and Brexit becoming a reality. Almost two years later, we are confronted with an ongoing ero-sion of liberal democracy and shrinking spac-es for civil society.

In this challenging context, we are convinced that democracy must not only be defended – but also re-thought beyond its current para- digms. Our objective is to develop ideas to prepare our democracy for tomorrow’s chal-lenges, but also to develop a better political system that works for all citizens. This is why we started working on incremental reforms of democratic institutions and processes, as well as develop more systemic responses. Based on three pillars - processes, structures, and mental models - we launched a number of projects, developed new ideas and speci- fic policy recommendations and contributed to the political discourse. In order to achieve

EDITORIAL

this, we built a vast network of thinkers and doers across Europe that promote democratic innovations.

Our projects in 2017 and 2018 had a strong fo-cus on representation and citizen participa-tion as well as inclusion and mobilisation of young people in the political process. We also researched and discussed topics such as the future of political parties, their relationships to civil society and the cooperation between parliaments in Europe. We tried out new for-mats such as a “Learning Journey” to give peo-ple working close to politics the opportunity to better understand how to shape democra-cy in their daily lives. We also organised vari-ous event series, such as “Democratic Innova-tion Dinners” or the “Challenging Democracy” series, with prominent thinkers from across the globe.

The annual highlights of the Democracy Lab were the “Innocracy Conferences”. The first conference took place in November 2017 and the second one in June 2018. There, projects and ideas were presented in keynotes, work-shops and co-creative formats. The confer-ences brought together thinkers, activists and decision-makers from over 20 countries to discuss a broad range of topics, from digi- tal apps that help improve citizen partici-pation to strategies for civil society orga-

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EDITORIAL

Berlin, August 2018

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

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nisations under pressure from authoritarian governments. We are pleased to announce that a third Innocracy will take place in 2019.

With its projects, events and publications, the Democracy Lab has become a hub for innovators in the political sphere in Germa-ny and all over Europe. We will continue our work, building a curated platform that em-powers civil society and develops new ideas for democracy.

We would like to particularly thank the Fed-eral Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citi-zens, Women and Youth and the programme “Demokratie leben!” for their support for the project “Democracy 2025 - Democratic innova-tions for a changing society“.

Enjoy the read!

Best regards,

Hanno BurmesterStrategic Lead

Sophie PornschlegelProject Manager

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I. WHAT’S THE DEMOCRACY LAB?

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

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THE DEMOCRACY LAB AIMS TO... Emphasise the advantages of change, agility and a culture of openness. These are necessary for the legitimacy of our democratic institutions.

Develop innovative ideas to renew democracy, which will inspire political deci-sion-makers.

Reinvigorate democracy. The Democracy Lab wants to empower political actors to suc-cessfully overcome the complex challenges of our time.

Promote democratic innovations in the public sector by developing and testing them and thereby improving democratic practices.

THE PILLARS OF THE DEMOCRACY LAB...

In the ‘Processes’ topic

area, we deal with civic de-

cision-making and partici-

pation and consider ways to

bring about greater support

for the political system. Dif-

ferent forms of deliberative

and participative democra-

cies will be analysed and dis-

cussed, alongside considering

the advantages and disadvan-

tages of direct democracy.

The ‘Intellectual Model’ pillar deals with the attitudes

of the population and politi-

cal actors towards democra-

cy. What do we think makes

up a “healthy” democracy?

What exactly do we mean by

“representativeness” or “lib-

eral democracy”? Which form

of democracy will citizens

want in the future?

The second pillar focuses on

‘Structures’ and mainly deals

with institutional and formal

questions about democracy.

Which innovations would

help to adapt our democratic

institutions to fit a globalised

and digitalised world? How

can the different levels of

decision-making be better

linked to one another, from

local to supranational levels?

How can executive institu-

tions improve their organisa-

tional cultures?

1

23

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DISCUSSION PAPER“BEYOND (THIS) DEMOCRACY”“Liberal democracy experiences multiple crises that are potentially fatal: an ecological crisis, a social crisis and an institutional crisis. To tackle these challenges, incremental reform within today’s parameters will not suffice. What it takes to both solve the crises and revive democracy is the re-definition of a 21st century demo-cratic purpose and a radical, transformative approach to doing politics.”

I. WHAT’S THE DEMOCRACY LAB?

D as Progressive Zentrum’s Democracy Lab opened in April 2017 as a platform to bring think-ers and doers together to discuss democratic innovations. Its main objective is to develop

positions, ideas and methods to improve and reform democratic structures and processes, but also to think beyond the current intellectual models we apply when thinking about our political system.

It offers a space for creative, interdisciplinary and international exchange. As a collaborative platform, we translate ideas coming from civil society into practical recommendations for de-cision-makers. We cover a wide range of topics to revive and innovate democracy. All projects within the Lab are carried out in cooperation with various partner organisations and bring together young experts, practitioners and activists from a number of sectors.

I. WHAT’S THE DEMOCRACY LAB?

DISCUSSION PAPER “SHIFTING FRAMES”“In six perspectives, the first paper of the Democracy Lab calls for a debate on mental models, architectures and processes on which liberal democracy is founded. In order to revive our current model of democracy, we need to start a discussion that does not replicate existing frames of thought. Instead, we need to create new ideas and perspectives by experimenting more and by cultivating a mindset that cherishes the imperfect.”

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

How did the idea for the Democracy Lab develop?My interest for democratic innovations de-veloped whilst working on a project dedicat-ed to political parties’ reform at Das Progres-sive Zentrum. We quickly realised how little had been done to keep democratic institu-tions up-to-date since the end of the Second World War. This is why I started to develop the idea for a project that focuses on democratic reform beyond incremental process innova-tion – the Democracy Lab. Its comprehensive focus on structural and cultural issues and improvements of the democratic process was intentional – after all, we are dealing with systemic issues here. When, a little while af-ter that, Brexit and Donald Trump’s election hit the headlines, we did not have a hard time to find support for our idea.

What are the core challenges for democracy today?In my eyes, the core challenges lie both on and beneath the “democratic surface”. First, democratic institutions and processes do not respond well to citizens and do not fit the en-vironment of the 21st century. And secondly, we have a far more challenging issue: Mod-ern democracy goes hand in hand with the national borders, exclusion of some parts of the population and “cost externalisation” of its economy. All these characteristics under-mine the legitimacy of Western democracies today and keep us from truly tackling climate change.

INTERVIEW WITH HANNO BURMESTER, STRATEGIC LEAD OF THE DEMOCRACY LAB

Which answers did the Democracy Lab develop for those issues?We are still looking for the magic bullet. But on a more serious note: We produced consid-erable output. We published several funda-mental texts on democratic transformation in the 21st century. On the structural level, we had several projects on key issues. For in-stance our policy fellow Maik Bohne, together with the “Heinrich Böll Foundation”, worked on how democratic representation can increase legitimacy and trust. On the process level, we published incremental, easy-to-implement ideas and examples, for instance on how poli-tics can stay in touch with young people.

Looking back at the past two years: What were your personal highlights of the journey in the Democracy Lab?I enjoyed building an international network of democratic co-creators and innovators. This culminated in two Innocracy Conferences, where it became tangible how hungry peo-ple from both in- and outside politics are to transform the status quo.

Can you give us a preview of upcoming pro-jects in the Democracy Lab?We are planning a 2019 Innocracy Conference, which is going to be very future-oriented. We are currently in the process of talking to network partners who want to drive projects within the Lab. Personally, I will write a third paper on „The next democracy“, where I will

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I. WHAT’S THE DEMOCRACY LAB?

“Democracy must constantly rethink itself in order to keep its core values alive. The Democracy Lab is dedicated to this idea. We are working towards better structures, procedures, and a modern understanding of democracy – experi-mental, co-creative and solutions-oriented.”

Hanno Burmester, Strategic Lead, Democracy Lab

HANNO BURMESTER is Strategic Lead in the Democracy Lab and Policy Fellow at Das Progressive Zentrum. He was the one who had the idea for a Democracy Lab in the first place. With his company “unlearn”, he consults companies of all sizes on mas-tering the cultural aspects of digitization. In the past, Hanno worked for different political in-stitutions on the national level and as a journalist, mostly for public broadcasters.

think about some core parameters every fu-ture democracy must fulfil to be meaningful in the environment of today and tomorrow.

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

A s a platform, we did not restrict ourselves to a set number of topics. Rather, as an open platform for dialogue and exchange, we looked at what our policy fellows and partners

brought forward, selected topics and then provided the necessary support and feedback for them to work on those topics. This method allowed us to recognise broader trends, such as the clear focus on community building and social cohesion in 2018, but also to give space to topics that normally are not on top of the agenda in politics and media, such as the cooperation between parliaments in Europe. In this section, you will find the highlights, topics and partners we worked with.

II. OUR TOPICS & PARTNERS

II. OUR TOPICS & PARTNERS

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1. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE DEMOCRACY LAB

April 2017Launch of the Democracy Labat Das Progressive Zentrum in Berlin

July 2017First DiscussionPaper: “ShiftingFrames”

August 2017First DemocraticInnovation Dinner:“Ideas on democraticreforms for the nextGerman government”

November 2017First Innocracy

Conference

March 2018Democratic Innovation Dinner: “The silentrevolution - How networkparties renew the Europeanparty landscape”

May 2018:Start of the ChallengingDemocracy RoundtableSeries

August 2018:End of thefirst projectperiod

October 2017Start of Project onPolitical Participationof Young People

December 2017Discussion Paperon how to reviverepresentativeDemocracy

June 2018Second Innocracy Conference:“The Next Democracy”

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018 II. OUR TOPICS & PARTNERS

We thank all our partners for their intellectual and financial support to our projects and events. Without those constructive and trusting cooperations, we would not have been

able to bring all the thinkers and doers together and shape the discourse on democratic inno-vation in Germany.

We especially thank the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth and the programme “Demokratie leben!” for their continuous support, as well as our partners of Innocracy Conference 2018.

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Media partner of Innocracy 2018

3. OUR PARTNERS2. OUR TOPICS

A s a Lab, our objective is not to have a chosen set of topics and work on them solving prob-lems. Rather, we addressed the issues that were brought to us. This list is therefore not

exhaustive, but covers what topics we worked on in the first phase - reflecting the needs of society and politics.

REVIVINGREPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY

DIGITALDEMOCRACY

POLITICALPARTICIPATION

POLICIESTO PROMOTE DEMOCRATIC

REFORM AND SUPPORT CIVIL SOCIETY

PARLIAMENTARISMIN EUROPE

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT IN POLITICS

POLITICAL PARTIES & CIVIL SOCIETY

STRENGHTENING TIESBETWEEN

ESTABLISHED ANDNEW PARTIES

EXPLORING THERELATIONS BETWEEN

POPULISM& THE FUTURE OF

LIBERAL DEMOCRACY

TRUST INPOLITICS & DEMOCRACY

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

Our projects in 2017-2018 promoted the debate on democratic innovation and reform, provid-ing new ideas to the political sphere, supporting and empowering civil society initiatives

- in order to work towards a better society and democracy. This encompassed a number of different projects, event formats and cooperations. In the following section, we selected three projects in order to present them in more depth.

The common response given in Germany to political disenchantment and populism

is: Let’s increase citizen participation! By fo-cusing on those debates, representation - the basic element for our democracies - has re-ceived little to no attention in comparison. Together with the “Heinrich Böll Foundation”, we decided to have a closer look at how to re-vive representative democracy beyond calls for more citizen participation.

From November 2017 to August 2018, we dis-cussed these questions with a number of stakeholders: Experts and academics during a

III. OUR FLAGSHIP PROJECTS

III. OUR PROJECTS

1. REVIVING REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY

workshop; Elected representatives during in-terviews; with citizens in three different Ger-man cities during focus groups; at two other workshops with students of “NRW School of Governance” and during a session at Innocracy Conference 2018 with an international audi-ence.

The results of those discussions were sum-marised in two publications: a Discussion Paper to set the scene and explain the core challenges representation faces, and a Policy Brief with concrete recommendations to im-prove representation in Germany.

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How can differing political interests and opinions be aggregated in order to be repre- sented properly in the political system, whilst keeping this system responsive and open to new ideas?

How can “the people” be represented beyond calls for more direct participation, and whilst strengthening the core institutions of representative democracy?

How can we create new places of representation that enable a civilised and inclusive discourse on core issues of society and politics?

What are the wishes and expectations of representation, both from the point of view of the representatives (politicians) and the represented?

SOME CORE QUESTIONS:

“Representative democracy can only be strengthened if the system empowers itself. Decisive is the debating culture between political parties and society, as well as between those represented and those representing.”

Maik Bohne, Fellow, Democracy Lab

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DISCUSSION PAPER

“REVIVINGREPRESENTATIVE

DEMOCRACY”

POLICY BRIEF

“CONFIDENCEINSTEAD OF

DISCONTENT”

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https://www.progressives-zentrum.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Wieviel-Ich-

im-Wir-Wandel-der-Repräsentation-in-Deutschland_Maik-Bohne-Sebastian-Bu-

kow-Laura-Kristine-Krause-Peter-Siller.pdf

https://www.progressives-zen-trum.org/wp-content/up-

loads/2018/10/18-10-19-RepräsentationImWan-del_Exp_6.pdf

Maik Bohne at Innocracy 2018

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

Social imbalance is an issue in German de-mocracy. Low-income groups are little

represented in politics. This promotes a vi-cious circle of unequal participation and lack of representation, leading to alienation of im-portant groups and a huge loss of democratic potential.

Looking at how to break this vicious circle, we soon understood that it starts at a very early stage, often as children and teenagers. This is why we focused on how to improve the political participation of young people from socially disadvantaged backgrounds.

2. POLITICAL PARTICIPATION OF YOUNG PEOPLEFROM DISADVANTAGED BACKGROUNDS

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III. OUR PROJECTS

Take the youth and their problems seriously

Avoid the “selection bias” & open up political rituals, content and language

Recognise and use the spaces young people visit, such as schools

Strengthen the multipliers & develop contacts to politically conscious youth in difficult environments (“Train the trainers”)

Strengthen trust & build up political networks

A FEW RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE PROJECT:

“It is not the lack of interest that is the cause for the lack of involvement. Political actors have a responsibility to ensure that every citizen has the same rights and opportunities to have his or her voice heard - and thus to make steps towards a better inclusion of those voices in political decision-making.”

Jérémie Gagné, Fellow, Democracy LabPOLICY BRIEF

“ENOUGH OF THINGS DONE HALFWAY:HOW CAN WE PROMOTE EQUAL

REPRESENTATION FOR EVERYONE?”

Thanks to interviews with pupils and teachers in high schools in “difficult areas” in Berlin, which were made possible by the NGO “Teach First Germany”, our policy fellow Jérémie Gagné put together a set of recommenda-tions to create more and better opportunities for young people from disadvantaged back-grounds to participate in politics.

We represented the policy recommendations during a Paper Launch Event in May 2018, and discussed the results with experts in politicaleducation, youth organisations and political parties.

JÉRÉMIE GAGNÉ is a Fellow within the Democracy Lab, working on equal representation and political participa-tion. Since 2016, he works for the po-litical research and consulting agency “policy matters”. Previously, Jérémie worked with the Bertelsmann Foun-dation, managing publications on the social dimension of political participa-tion. Jérémie holds masters degrees in political science and European affairs.

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

One objective in the Democracy Lab is to think beyond traditional frameworks.

This also means to try out new formats that haven’t been tested before in the political sphere. One of these formats was a “Learning Journey” together with the organisational de-velopment company “Compass Orange”.

From March to June 2018, ten participants working in political parties, ministries, civil society organisations and other public ad-ministration bodies gathered together for six workshop days. They discussed how to live and promote democracy in their daily lives, working in organisations close to politics.

3. “LEARNING JOURNEY” - DEMOCRACY IN THE PROFESSIONAL WORLD

What was the “Learning Journey” and why is it an innovative format? The character of our “Learning Journey” can be described as a “Learning Lab”. We creat-ed a group that made it possible to work on the ‘creative space in between’ different so-cietal sectors. We offered empowerment and support for people working in different roles, organisations and sectors of society. We gathered a group of highly committed people to connect and strengthen our democratic society, willing to work self-organised. Our common goal was to learn more about the patterns and about what is needed for per-sonal and organisational empowerment in the political field.

What was the concept for the “Learning Journey” and what did the participants learn over the course of the six sessions? The “Learning Journey” offered a safe space for self-reflection and personal as well as group-related learning processes. Along with the interests of the participants, theoretical inputs and interventions were given. I intro-duced parameters and conditions for chang-ing processes, dealing with “resistance to change” and creating constructive dialogue processes and community building. In this “Learning Journey”, we started to develop a special language to foster democratic struc-tures in organisations, as well as in groups and society. For me, this was a very inspiring project.

III. OUR PROJECTS

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Participants of the “Learning Journey”

INTERVIEWWITH CAROLIN GEBEL, FELLOW IN THE DEMOCRACY LAB

How can we all make sure to have a partici-patory culture in a professional context? How can we improve co-decision-procedures in hierarchical structures? At what level - indi-vidual or organisational, regional and nation-al - can I ensure that democracy is a topic of conversation? These were some of the ques-tions the participants discussed during this “Learning Journey”.

“If you wish to foster democracy in our society, you have to behave in a demo- cratic way yourself – in all aspects of your life. The Learning Journey was about reflecting on your own attitudes of decision-making, participation and dealing with minority views and opinions.”

Carolin Gebel, Fellow, Democracy Lab

What is the role of democracy in a profes-sional context? This is a big philosophical question to answer! During the “Learning Journey”, we focused on the belief that if you wish to foster democ-racy in our society, you have to behave in a democratic way yourself – in all aspects of your life. It’s about reflecting on your own at-

titudes of decision-making, participation and dealing with minority views and opinions. For example, “new work” theories often give us the impression that our professional back-grounds are becoming more “democratic“ in a way. I think that this is something you have to follow closely to see if that is truly the case.

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018 IV. THE DEMOCRACY LAB’S ANNUAL HIGHLIGHT: THE INNOCRACY CONFERENCES

How do we bring together a broad range of thinkers and doers that provide innova-

tive ideas on democratic innovation?

That was one of the questions we asked our-selves straight from the start of the Democ-racy Lab. Whilst sitting on a bench outside our office on a sunny summer day, we came up with the idea of an “Innocracy Conference” to be held annually in Berlin.

We didn’t want another conference full of panel discussions and white collars. Rath-er, our objective was to bring together aca-demics, politicians and civil society activists

from across the globe and especially Europe - breaking up bubbles and promoting an open dialogue that might sometimes be uncom-fortable, but always constructive.

In November 2017 the first “Innocracy - Conference on Democratic Innovation” took place in Berlin, with a strong focus on process innovation. Hosting over 120 participants and 26 speakers from 12 countries, we cre-ated a space for exchange, incentivised new networks and introduced a variety of inter-national best practices into the German dis-course on democratic innovation.

IV. THE DEMOCRACY LAB’SANNUAL HIGHLIGHT: THE INNOCRACY CONFERENCE

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Learning Journey

CAROLIN GEBEL was our cooperation partner for the Learning Journey and a fellow within the Democracy Lab. She is the Managing Partner at compass orange, an organisational development company. Her work focuses on change management and cultural processes as well as personality development and sustainability in management.

What are “Communities of Practice”?“Communities of Practice” is a form of group deliberation with the goal of creating and gaining knowledge related to a specific inter-est. The concept of “Communities of Practice” describes a type of learning that has exist-ed for as long as people have been learning and sharing their experiences. “Communities

of Practice” can also arise naturally if people working together share a common interest. Or they can be created, such as in environ-ments created during the “Learning Journey”. Knowledge in groups and organisations is nothing that can be managed. It has to be cultivated, like a garden.

Innocracy 2018

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

Next to a livestream of the conference and a speaker’s dinner to enable all invited speak-ers to get to know each other, we published an “Anthology on Democratic Innovation” pre-senting some of the highlight projects of the first Innocracy Conference.

In June 2018, we organised the second Innoc-racy Conference, this time with a strong em-phasis on tackling the core challenges our democracy faces, such as digitalisation, glo-balisation, climate change, but also question-ing traditional paradigms at the heart of the “social contract”: Economic prosperity and social mobility.

Innocracy 2018 thus invited its participants to confront the systemic challenges democracy must overcome in order to survive. Entitled “The next democracy”, we categorised the different sessions in four clusters: “System-ic Reform”, “Sustainable Democracy”, Digital Democracy” and “Community and Belonging”.

Over 180 participants from Germany, France, Belgium, the UK, Italy, Sweden, the Neth-erlands and Poland participated, listened, discussed and exchanged ideas. Our guests were, amongst others, Ulrike Guérot, who presented the idea of European Republic; Claus Leggewie and Patrizia Nanz, who pre-sented the idea of “Future Councils”; and a range of young leaders who discussed the fu-ture of democracy.

The conference ended with a keynote speech by Family Minister Franziska Giffey entitled “Is politics changing? We change politics!”, where she ended on an important message: Politics needs to be framed in a manner accessible to everybody - that is the only way trust and se-curity can be reinstated in democracy.

IV. THE DEMOCRACY LAB’S ANNUAL HIGHLIGHT: THE INNOCRACY CONFERENCES

“We are in a phase of systemic transition: from the post-war understanding of what a democracy is, and how it works, towards a different, new democ-racy. The Innocracy Conferences seek to explore what the next steps could be. With over 150 participants and 20+ speakers from across the globe coming to Berlin, we explore three interconnected levels: new ideas and mental models; the remaking of structures; and the redesigning of democratic processes.”

Sophie Pornschlegel, Project Manager Democracy Lab

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SYSTEMIC REFORMHow must democratic institu-tions and structures change to be resilient in times of trans-formation?

SUSTAINABLE DEMOCRACYHow can we reintegrate politi-cal and economic systems (i.e. democracy and capitalism) into the boundaries of our eco-system?

DIGITAL DEMOCRACYWhich kind of governance does it take to make techno-logical progress compatible with the "social contract"?

COMMUNITY & BELONGINGHow can we create individual and collective identities that serve as drivers to build the next democracy?

DEBATEAn open dialogue format aimed at exchanging and dicussing ideas.

CO-CREATEA facilitated workshop to work in a collaborative environment and develop practical ideas.

INSPIREA short, catchy stage presenta-tion followed by a Q&A session with the audience.

THE FORMATS AND THEMATIC CLUSTERS OF INNOCRACY 2018

Sophie Pornschlegel presenting Innocracy 2018

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

Before the Innocracy Conferences, Speaker’s Dinners took place so that those invited to speak at the conferences could get to know each other and discuss the topics beforehand.

THE ANTHOLOGY ONDEMOCRATIC INNOVATION

presents a selection of the projectsand ideas discussed during the first

Innocracy Conference.

IV. THE DEMOCRACY LAB’S ANNUAL HIGHLIGHT: THE INNOCRACY CONFERENCES

Overcoming social division

Strategies to break (online and off- line) bubbles

Civil society as partner for trans- formative change

Diversity as a resource for sustain- able societal transformation

Digitalisation and big data for local democracy and civic engagement

Deliberative Democracy & Citizen’s Assemblies

Personal development and its im- pact on society

Alternatives to the majority principle

Municipalism, civic innovations and network parties

SOME TOPICS OF THE INNOCRACYCONFERENCES:

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Family Minister Franziska Giffey speaking at Innocracy 2018 Workshop session during Innocracy 2018

Patricia Nanz and Claus Leggewie present the“Future Councils” at Innocracy 2018Workshop session during Innocracy 2018

The team of Das Progressive Zentrum together with Family Minister Franziska Giffey at Innocracy 2018

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

N ext to our highlight events and projects, we worked on a number of topics that are all connected to our main objective: Innovating democracy and thinking beyond the

traditional paradigms. With discussion papers, policy briefs, paper launch events and discus-sion rounds, we touched upon a large range of topics related to the future of democracy.

V. FURTHER TOPICS & EVENTS

F rom August 2017 onwards, the Democracy Lab launched an event series entitled

“Democratic Innovation Dinners”.

In these small formats, we brought together a number of experts to discuss relevant issues in more depth and in a setting that allowed for an open, constructive discussion.

FURTHER PROJECTS1. DEMOCRATIC INNOVATION DINNERS

Thanks to the more informal character of these events under Chatham House Rule, the guests spoke freely, which enabled us to ex-plore points of disagreement and consensus on certain issues with more honesty.

V. FURTHER TOPICS & EVENTS

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New political parties: “Network parties – A new model to democratise and digitise party politics?”

Parliamentary Cooperation in the EU: “Improved cooperation between parliaments in the EU: What role for interparliamentary conferences?”

Digital Democracy: “Transforming not Digitizing: Germany’s path to digital democracy“

Spiritualise - Book on Spirituality and Politics

Populism and De-Democratisation

TOPICS WE WORKED ON:

Policy recommendations for democratic innovations at national level

Personal development in the political sphere

Update for our democracy: Exploring opportunities for change in times of global challenges

The development of network parties across Europe

Citizen-centered administration in the digital age

OUR TOPICS:

Challenging Democracy Roundtable

POLICY BRIEF

“IMPROVED COOPERATION

BETWEEN PARLIAMENTS

IN THE EU”

DISCUSSION PAPER

“DIGITALDEMOCRACY:

TRANSFORMING, NOT

DIGITIZING”

http://www.progressives-zentrum.org/wp-con-tent/uploads/2018/11/Improved-coopera-

tion-between-parliaments-in-the-EU_Das-Pro-gressive-Zentrum_Daniel-Schade.pdf

https://www.progressives-zentrum.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/DPZ-Discus-

sion-Paper_Transforming-Not-Digitizing.-Ger-manys-Path-to-Digital-Democracy_Laura-Kris-

tine-Krause.pdf

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

In the “Challenging Democracy” series, we organised exclusive quarterly roundtables

with a selected group of participants to dis-cuss the challenges liberal democracies face as well as concrete political responses, to-gether with the think tank “Zentrum Liberale Moderne”.

The first event took place in Februar 2018 with the book presentation by academic and au-thor Yascha Mounk, “The People vs. Democracy: Why our freedom is in danger and how to save it”.

2. CHALLENGING DEMOCRACY ROUNDTABLESThe second event of this series took place in May 2018 and discussed the rise of right-wing populism in Europe and beyond, amongst others with Harvard academic Peter Hall and populism expert Cas Mudde.

This event series was organised by project manager Paulina Fröhlich with the support of the team at Das Progressive Zentrum.

N ext to our projects, the team members of the Democracy Lab were regularly invited to conferences, panel discussions and workshops to present the work of the Democracy Lab.

In addition, we published articles in newspapers and were partner at a number of conferences, such as the “Creative Bureaucracy Festival” hosted by Tagesspiegel, the “Revision Summit” as well as the international conference “Q Berlin Questions”.

VI. THE DEMOCRACY LAB IN THE NEWS

VI. THE DEMOCRACY LAB IN THE NEWS

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PUBLISHED ARTICELS:

“WHERE ARE THE IDEASFOR DEMOCRACY?”

July 2017,by Hanno Burmester &Laura-Kristine Krause

“STOP THE STAGNATION!”

September 2017,by Sophie Pornschlegel

“ASK THE CITIZENS!”

June 2018, by Maik Bohne &Sebastian Bukow

Creative Bureaucracy Festival

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

KEYNOTES & DISCUSSIONS

3130

Sophie speaking at the “Think Tank Tandem”conference, December 2017

Hanno speaking at the “Denk ich an Deutschland” Conference, December 2017

Sophie at ZDF - Maybrit Illner’s Talkshow, January 2018 Hanno at the Presidential Palace “Schloss Bellevue”, September 2018

VI. THE DEMOCRACY LAB IN THE NEWS

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

SOPHIE PORNSCHLEGELPROJECT MANAGER DEMOCRACY LAB

Sophie Pornschlegel joined the Democracy Lab after having worked for three

years in a public affairs consultancy. In the Democracy Lab, she manages

and coordinates the projects, partners and the team, as well as the Innocracy

Conferences. Her main interest lies in the future of liberal democracy, political

politics and civil society, populism, and democracy beyond the Nation-State.

Sophie brings with her the experience in political institutions, private sector

companies and think tanks and her studies in politics and European Affairs.

MICHELLE DEUTSCHPROJECT ASSISTANT DEMOCRACY LAB

Michelle Deutsch joined Das Progressive Zentrum as an intern and continued

as a project assistant within the Democracy Lab. Thanks to her organisational

talent and her topical understanding for the projects, she provides new ideas

to improve the projects and events and operative support for the publications

and the organisation of events. Michelle made sure that Innocracy 2018 was a

success. She is currently studying a Master in Public Policy at Hertie School of

Governance and is particularly interested in citizen and online participation.

VII. THE TEAM BEHIND THE DEMOCRACY LAB

VII. THE TEAM BEHIND THE DEMOCRACY LAB

HANNO BURMESTERSTRATEGIC LEAD DEMOCRACY LAB

As the Strategic Lead of the Lab, Hanno Burmester develops innovative projects,

conceptualises them and is responsible for the broader strategic decisions of

the Democracy Lab. He brings with him a large experience in several political

institutions and as a journalist, as well as his expertise in organisational devel-

opment, as he co-founded a consultancy firm called “unlearn”. Hanno’s main

interests within the Lab are the future of democracy and political parties.

LAURA-KRISTINE KRAUSEHEAD OF THE DEMOCRACY LAB

Laura Krause was heading the programme Future of Democracy until March

2018, before becoming Managing Director of More in Common Germany. Previ-

ously, she worked as a Senior Associate at Bernstein Public Policy. Laura Krause

is Co-Chairwoman of D64 and Fellow of the Transatlantic Digital Debates 2017.

She studied Political Science and Public Policy in Passau, Berlin, and Seattle.

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W ithout a team of dedicated, engaged and energetic people, nothing would

have happened within the Democracy Lab. Ideas are people-driven. This is why the most important aspect of our work is to provide a platform for thinkers and doers and to estab-lish an infrastructure for projects to strive.

For that, we have a wonderful team with-in Das Progressive Zentrum. We would like to thank all the people who made the Democracy Lab possible - our partners, the continuous support of our colleagues, the policy fellows and especially the Managing Director of Das Progressive Zentrum, Dominic Schwickert.

A special thank goes to our graphic designer Daniel Menzel, who always bore with us despite the long hours and demanding re-quests.

In a fast-moving world, organisations have to adapt to their environment - we did too. Some of our colleagues left the Democracy Lab during the journey to pursue further careers in the political sphere, still fighting for a better democracy. We thank our pro-ject assistants Stefan Landt and Elisabeth Gniosdorsch for their continuous support. Fi-nally, thanks to digital all-rounder Ann Cathrin Riedel, who supported the Lab as Das Progres-sive Zentrum’s social media manager.

We would also like to thank Laura Bickel and Fabian Voß who worked on the pilot project of the Democracy Lab as well as the interns who worked within the Lab in 2017 and 2018: Falco Hüsson, Nicolina Kirby, Eva Zimmer- mann, Felix Beer, Nele Fritsche, Lukas Kögel, Txai de Almeida, Serafine Dinkel, Romy Hansum, Hendrik Zschoch, Anna Körner.

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The team and guests of Innocracy 2017

DEMOCRACY LAB | PROGRESS REPORT 2017/2018

Das Progressive Zentrum, located in Berlin, is an independent and non-profit think tank. The aim of Das Progressive Zentrum is to foster new networks of progressive actors from different backgrounds and to promote innovative politics as well as economic and social progress. In this respect, Das Progressive Zentrum gathers mainly young thinkers and decision makers from Germany and Europe in its progressive debates.

www.progressives-zentrum.org

Das Progressive Zentrum launched the Democracy Lab in April 2017. It offers a space for creative, interdisciplinary and international exchange. As a collaborative platform, we aim at translating ideas coming from civil society into practical recommendations for decision-makers in the field of democratic innovation. Our projects cover a wide range of topics, from digital democ-racy, the engagement of young people in politics to the issue of representativity and trust.

We thank the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth and the Programme “Demokratie leben!” for their support for the project “Democracy 2025 - Democratic innovations for a changing society“.

www.democracylab.de

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PUBLISHING INFORMATION

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All rights reserved. Reproduction or similar use of works by Das Progressive Zentrum, even in excerpts, is only permitted with prior written permission.

Photo Copyrights: p. 9: Hanno Burmester, Alex & Jacobp. 11: Alex & Jacob, Per Jacob Blutp. 15: Maik Bohne at Innocracy 2018, Alex & Jacobp. 16: Jérémie Gagné, Alex & Jacobp. 17: Alex & Jacob, Per Jacob Blutp. 18: Learning Journey Participants, Alex & Jacobp. 19: Carolin Gebel, compass orangep. 20: Learning Journey, Alex & Jacobp. 21: Innocracy 2018, Alex & Jacob & DPZp. 23: Sophie Pornschlegel at Innocracy 2018, Alex & Jacobp. 24: Innocracy 2018, Alex & Jacobp. 25: Speaker‘s Dinner, Alex & Jacobp. 27: Challenging Democracy, Kathleen Prachtp. 28: Challenging Democracy, Cas Mudde, Marieluise Beck, Hedwig Richter, Peter Hallp. 29: Creative Bureaucracy Festival, 7. & 8.9.2018, Verlag der Tagesspiegel, Robert Schlesinger p. 30: Denk ich an Deutschland (Picture on the top left corner), Deutsche Bank; Think Tank Tandem, Stiftung Genshagen; Denk ich an Deutschland (Picture on the right corner), Alfred Herr- hausen Gesellschaft; Maybrit Illner, ZDF; Schloss Bellevue, Bundespräsidialamt, DKJS/Dorothea Tuchp. 32: Innocracy 2017, Alex & Jacobp. 33: All photos: Alex & Jacob

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Executive Director: Dominic Schwickert

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August 2018