The journey of PartiCipate continues. After winning the GIZ Innovation Fund, let us give you an update on latest news and our next steps.
TheGIZInnovationFund’sBestProductAward
As you know, our vision is to build a digital advisory platform on citizen participation. Throughout last year, our team worked on designing and testing the toolkit, in close collaboration with pilot institutions and organisations on the ground.
You can find our prototype online on https://www.participation.digital/
On November 25th, we presented our final prototype to an expert jury, plus some 2,000 listeners in an online event. Out of six finalist teams, and with more than 90 ideas handed in initially, our product won one of the two Best Product Awards.
In case you weren’t able to join the final event or you want to refresh your memory, watch our pitch and the award ceremony on YouTube.
Next Step: Maturation Phase
Coming with the Award, our team has been granted resources to further develop and roll-out our product.
At the end of this Maturation Phase later this year, we aim to run a comprehensive digital enabler kit for citizen participation, based on a sustainable operating model.
Our plans for 2021 include to:
- define and verify our digital advisory approach
- refine our toolkit of participation methods
- validate it with pilot programs
- launch our new public website
- start into additional partnerships
- ensure continuity and sustainability
We are looking for partners
To enhance and improve our upcoming work, we are looking for partner programs, organisations and institutions to take this journey with us. That’s why we will be holding an open call in March, where we will introduce our approach and discuss potential collaboration.
Let us know in case you’d love to get involved!
Why PartiCipate?
Digital Citizen Participation is a way to engage citizens and to make public decisions more accessible. While there is a broad range of solutions on the market, it is not easy for municipalities to implement a suitable solution.
This is especially valid for local governments in the Global South with limited digital literacy, scarce resources and very heterogeneous citizen groups.
That’s why we are building a digital enabler kit on citizen participation, providing local governments and civil society organizations with:
- An assessment of their specific needs and context for citizen participation
- Recommendations for suitable participation methods
- It connects them to existing digital platforms
You want to hear more? You have specific questions or you’d love to get involved?
Then get in touch with one of our team members, or reach out to us via info@participation.digital
Your Team PartiCipate
Lisa Hiemer-Maqoma, Sandra Fuhr, Nina Harnischfeger,
Annika Schönfeld, Katharina Lampe and Johannes Mager