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How can we efficiently engage citizens in conversations and decision-making for climate change? Our partners in Malmö recently shared all their tips and tricks for creating a climate citizen assembly, conveniently combined in a handbook. This document will guide you through their process, what they’...

The Speak Up project has officially reached its halfway mark! After a year and a half of dedicated collaboration, our twelve partners have led a range of pilot initiatives, navigated a variety of challenges, and uncovered valuable insights along the way. To capture this collective knowlegde, we cond...

The Hannah Arendt Institute has just published its report on the Collective Impact Model (CIM)! This report outlines how the CIM was applied in three of Speak Up’s partner cities: Malmö, Mechelen, and Skive. It combines clear theory with on-the-ground practice, offering tools, inspiring case studies...

In Roeselare (Belgium), a unique initiative is transforming neighbourhoods by building stronger local support networks. The Dialogue Maker is a full-time community facilitator who’s responsibility is to actively help residents both offline and online. He provides residents with information, support,...

In Oldenburg (Germany), the opening of a new leisure area turned a simple park into an opportunity for citizen participation. During the “Name Vote” initiative, citizens were invited to help name the area as part of its official opening on August 15th 2025. Around 140 suggestions were collected that...

In Oldenburg (Germany), creative ideas are being used to spark conversations and promote civic engagement. With the “Oldenburg Beermats”, residents were invited to take part in a unique initiative that connected everyday dialogue with broader themes of democracy and inclusion. In this article, the c...

On Wednesday July 9th 2025, Bellidée organized the Banquet Citoyen in Saint-Martin-Boulogne (France) —an open-air civic celebration that has become a yearly summer tradition for the region’s social centers. This year, the event brought together up to 650 attendees! This included residents, users of...

The EU Youth Strategy for 2019-2027 highlights a concerning decline in participation among young people in the EU. Given this context, it is crucial to understand barriers to participation and how to foster youth engagement. As part of Interreg North Sea’s LISTEN project, partners from Sweden, Franc...

Anne Tortzen is an expert in co-production and citizen engagement and founder of Center for Citizen Dialogue (Denmark). Anne has trained as a political scientist and process- and communication consultant. She has published a number of books and articles on citizen engagement, co-creation and de...