Labs of the World Forum for Democracy 2017
LAB 1 - Is hybrid democracy more inclusive?
9 November 2017 - 11.00-13.00
The lab will explore the effectiveness of e-participatory tools and their impact on decision-making, within the existing constitutional framework of representative democracy.
LAB 2 - “Corruption and populism: can the international community help?”
9 November 2017 - 11.00-13.00
LAB 3 - Fact checking: is it worth the effort?
9 November 2017 - 11.00-13.00
LAB 4 - Making votes count more
9 November 2017 - 11.00-13.00
The lab will look into alternative voting rules and systems and explore their potential impact on voter turnout.
LAB 5 - Participatory democracy: an antidote to populism?
9 November 2017 - 11.00-13.00
The lab will look into examples of participatory democracy to identify the best ways to involve citizens in political decision-making processes.
LAB 6 - Citizens’ disconnect: can parties open up?
9 November 2017 - 11.00-13.00
The lab will consider the attractiveness of political parties and movements that are based on different forms of participatory democracy and will explore opportunities for traditional parties to transform themselves and develop new political narratives enhancing citizens’ trust in policy making.
LAB 7 - Bursting social media eco chambers
9 November 2017 - 14.30-16.30
The lab will examine the detrimental effects of social media filter bubbles and algorithms and will explore solutions to make readers more aware of their reading habits and help them to integrate different worldviews.
LAB 8 - Corruption and populism: can citizen watchdogs help?
9 November 2017 - 14.30-16.30
The lab will consider the impact of citizens’ monitoring initiatives on corruption and their potential influence on tackling populist trends through strengthening the integrity of, and trust in parliamentarians and other elected officials.
LAB 9 - Fake news: does fact checking work?
9 November 2017 - 14.30-16.30
The lab will look into examples of fact checking methodologies to identify most effective approaches in cracking down fake stories.
LAB 10 - ArtiVism against populism
9 November 2017 - 14.30-16.30
The lab will explore the role of arts and culture in shaping political ethics and values and their impact on generating social and political change.
LAB 11 - Can democracy survive public service media?
9 November 2017 - 14.30-16.30
The lab will discuss the threat populism represents to public service media and how can international standards protect these media.
LAB 12 - Big data: campaigning or manipulation?
9 November 2017 - 14.30-16.30
The lab will debate how big data affects democracy and how citizens can be made aware of their possible misuses. It will also explore possible regulations to secure privacy rights online.
LAB 13 - Civic education – how does it increase resilience to populism?
9 November 2017 - 14.30-16.30
Citizenship education, defined as educating people to become clear-thinking and enlightened citizens who participate in decisions concerning society, is considered a lever to prevent populist upsurges. However, even societies that have invested considerably into citizenship education, were hit by the populist phenomenon. Therefore, this lab will focus on the way Germany’s political foundations have responded and do respond to the populist upsurge in the country.