DemocracyInnovatorsPodcast · Living civic archive
An independent record of the tools, institutions and practical experiments changing how collective decisions are made.
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Isabella Roberts discusses her move from finance and electoral politics into research on deliberative democracy, AI and immersive technology. She explains her BoomTown Festival experiment using surveys and biosensors during mini citizens’ assemblies, including an early finding of increased shared id
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Paul Nemitz examines how concentrated control over data, infrastructure and AI can weaken democratic life, and argues that these technologies are not politically neutral. Drawing on his experience with the GDPR and other EU digital legislation, he discusses regulatory enforcement, the limits of trea
Thomas Lorenz discusses Brief nach Berlin, an open-source, AI-assisted tool that helps citizens identify the appropriate political representative, draft a letter about a local concern and then copy it by hand. The conversation uses this practical project to examine how civic technology can lower bar
Former Vermont lawmaker Terry Bouricious explains how observing the British Columbia Citizens’ Assembly led him to focus on sortition: selecting ordinary citizens by lottery to make public decisions. Drawing on his experience inside elected politics, he argues that elections favor political elites a
Malik Lakoubay of Dark Matter Labs discusses how civic infrastructure can be financed as an asset class rather than depending solely on philanthropy. Drawing on his work with RadicalxChange and Dark Matter Labs, he explores democracy and civic bonds, community-led risk sensing in Mumbai, data owners
Olivier Schulbaum discusses how Platoniq and Goteo connect civic technology, culture, social innovation and democratic experimentation. He examines citizen assemblies through affective legitimacy, enclave deliberation and art-based methods, arguing that those most affected should help set the agenda
Ryan Koch, host of Civic Tech Chat, joins Alessandro Oppo for a cross-podcast conversation about how civic tech has evolved from volunteer networks into a professional field—and how AI is changing what people can build for the public good.
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