The 2013 World Forum for Democracy "Rewiring democracy - reconnecting citizens and democratic institutions in the information age", organised by the Council of Europe with the support of the French government, the Alsace Region and the City of Strasbourg, is being held in Strasbourg, France, 27-29 November 2013.
Over the past few years, internet has become a stimulating space for democratic innovation. Every day, participatory websites are created by parliaments, governments and local authorities, allowing citizens to contribute directly to decision-making processes, to debate political options in real-time, and thus to influence the decisions made by their representatives. Is this an answer to the so-called ‘crisis of politics' which manifests itself through citizens' disaffection from political parties and representative institutions?
Should these new online forms of public participation be simply considered as technological advances or do they demand, on the contrary, to re-define democracy? The rapid growth of internet challenges the traditional functioning of representative democracy, but does it lay the foundations of a "democracy 2.0"? Do our institutions, political parties and modes of political participation need to be reshaped accordingly?
Members of civil society, elected officials, political leaders and journalists from more than 100 countries gathered in Strasbourg to discuss these trends and assess not only the opportunities they bring but also the possible risks they carry for our fundamental freedoms.
Find out more on:
- World Forum for Democracy website