THE DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY AISBL

Their core work

The Democratic Society is a Brussels-based NGO specializing in citizen engagement, participatory democracy, and social innovation within public policy. They design and run deliberative processes — such as participatory budgeting and citizen assemblies — that help cities and public authorities involve residents in decision-making. Their work bridges democratic practice with urban and climate policy, helping municipalities and EU institutions translate citizen input into actionable policy outcomes. They bring hands-on facilitation and methodology expertise to large research consortia tackling governance challenges.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

The Democratic Society entered H2020 in 2019 with PaCE, focused on understanding populism and strengthening civic engagement as a response. By 2021, their work shifted clearly toward applied democratic tools — participatory budgeting, urban policy co-design, and citizen-led climate action. This evolution shows a move from studying democratic challenges to deploying concrete participatory methods in cities and EU policy processes.

They are moving from democratic theory toward practical city-level engagement tools for climate and cohesion policy — expect future work at the intersection of citizen participation and green transition governance.

How they like to work

The Democratic Society operates exclusively as a consortium participant, never as coordinator, which is typical for a specialized NGO contributing methodology and facilitation expertise rather than leading large research programs. With 49 unique partners across 19 countries from just 3 projects, they work in large, diverse consortia. This broad network suggests they are valued as a reliable engagement partner who can be plugged into different thematic contexts wherever citizen participation is needed.

Despite only 3 projects, they have built a wide network of 49 partners across 19 countries, indicating participation in large pan-European consortia. Their Brussels base positions them well within the EU policy ecosystem.

What sets them apart

Few organizations combine hands-on democratic facilitation skills with EU research project experience the way Democratic Society does. They occupy a niche at the intersection of governance innovation and applied urban policy — not a think tank producing reports, but a practitioner organization that designs and runs citizen engagement processes. For any consortium needing genuine public participation components rather than token consultation, they bring both the methodology and the track record.

Highlights from their portfolio

• NetZeroCities
  Their largest project (EUR 542,500) — a flagship EU mission-linked initiative accelerating city-level net zero transitions, combining climate action with citizen engagement at scale.
• DEMOTEC
  Directly tests participatory budgeting as a tool for EU cohesion policy — a concrete experiment in giving citizens decision-making power over real public funds.
• PaCE
  Tackles the politically sensitive topic of populism through civic engagement, showing the organization's willingness to address contentious democratic challenges.