The Role of Civil Servants in Strengthening Citizen Participation Lessons from the Agents of Co-Existence Network
Citizen participation is an essential pillar of democracy, yet many municipalities struggle to create effective and inclusive engagement processes. The Agents of Co-Existence (AoCE) Network, a European collaboration of cities working together as a URBACT action planning network, focuses on innovative ways to bridge the gap between governments and citizens. Basically, they look at two ways to improve citizen participation. On the one hand, they search for new ways and methods to include citizens in decision-making processes. On the other, they seek ways to foster meaningful engagement by redefining the role of civil servants. This requires experimenting with new participatory approaches and learning from each other. After 1,5 years of working and exploring together, it is time to share some relevant findings and key insights from the AoCE network and related studies, shedding light on how civil servants can better facilitate citizen participation at the local level
