This two-part webinar, organised and moderated by ENSURED researcher Inés M. Pousadela from CIVICUS/Universidad ORT Uruguay, offered a space for reflection about the opportunities available for the United Nations (UN) to fulfil the potential contained in the opening words of its founding charter, “We the Peoples”. Only reforming global governance to better include the world’s citizenry and foster strategic civil society participation will allow the UN to remain fit for purpose in a world that is radically different from that of 1945.
In the first webinar, we turned for inspiration to the world’s most advanced experiment in supranational democracy and citizen participation – the European Union (EU). Four guest speakers reviewed the EU’s progress, remaining gaps, unfulfilled potential,opportunities for further growth, and the replicability of European participatory mechanisms and institutions at the global level.
In the second session, representatives of five civil society organisations explored ways of creating a more inclusive, participatory, and democratic UN. These proposals include the appointment of a civil society envoy, the introduction of a world citizen’s initiative mechanism, and the institution of a world parliamentary assembly.
Participatory Democracy at the European Level:What Can the World Learn from the EU?
The first panel brought together four experts in European democracy and civic participation: Daniela Vancic (Democracy International), Eleonora Poli (Centre for European Policy Network/Italian Institute of International Affairs), Elisa Lironi (European Citizen Action Service) and Ophélie Masson (European Alternatives).
Context and Challenges
Eleonora Poli opened the discussion by providing crucial context for understanding the current challenges facing European democracy. She described a complex landscape of overlapping crises – economic, security, and pandemic-related – that have significantly affected citizens’ trust in institutions. Poli noted that lower-middle class citizens in particular express the least trust in both EU and national institutions. She explained that while voter turnout has increased, this has paradoxically resulted in greater support for far-right populist parties. This trend underscores the urgent need for better communication about existing participation mechanisms and more effective engagement with citizens.
Daniela Vancic brought another perspective to the discussion, emphasising that the EU has already developed some innovative participation tools that are not currently available at the national level in many member states. She highlighted the European Citizens Initiative (ECI) as a groundbreaking example of transnational participatory democracy. Vancic argued that, rather than starting from scratch, efforts should focus on improving and expanding these existing instruments to make them more effective and accessible to citizens.
Elisa Lironi focused on the structural challenges facing EU democracy, noting the limited number of official participation tools available at the EU level and the persistent disconnect between EU institutions and citizens’ daily lives. She emphasised the criticalimportance of civic education about EU decision-making processes and discussed both the potential and risks of digital democracy tools, highlighting how technological solutions must be balanced with concerns around accessibility and inclusion.
Ophélie Masson brought attention to the importance of citizen assemblies – or, as she preferred to call them, “popular assemblies”to be more inclusive of non-citizens residing in the EU. She detailed both the promise and limitations of these democratic innovations, particularly at the EU level. Masson emphasised that while such assemblies have shown promise, their effectiveness has been limited by issues of representation and the non-binding nature of their outcomes.
Potential and Limitations of Existing Mechanisms
The discussion then turned to the examination of specific participatory mechanisms, with particular focus on the ECI. Elisa Lironi explained that triggering this mechanism requires over one million signatures from at least seven member states, and noted that only 10 such initiatives have succeeded since its inception in 2012. Still, she argued that the impact of these initiatives often extends beyond direct legislative outcomes, serving as valuable tools for awareness-raising and influencing policy discussions. Even unsuccessful initiatives, she noted, can play an important role in shaping public debate and building transnational networks.
Eleonora Poli added important context about the challenges facing the ECI, noting that 58 per cent of citizens remain unaware of the mechanism’s existence. She pointed out that participants in the ECI are geographically concentrated in older EU member states and emphasised the crucial role that civil society organisations play in facilitating participation. Both Poli and Lironi stressed the need for better communication and civic education to make these tools more accessible and effective.
The discussion of citizen assemblies, led by Ophélie Masson, centred on the recent Conference on the Future of Europe as the first major experiment with EU-level assemblies. Masson detailed the main challenges, particularly regarding representation and the selection process. She noted that such assemblies have proven most effective at local and municipal levels, where participants can more easily see the direct impact of their involvement. Her key recommendation: assembly outcomes need to have binding force to ensure meaningful impact.
There is an urgent need for better communication about existing participation mechanisms and more effective engagement with citizens.
Digital democracy and crowdsourcing emerged as another major theme, with Elisa Lironi sharing insights from her research on using these tools for legislation and constitution-making. She outlined the potential for digital platforms to serve as agenda-setting mechanisms at the EU level while emphasising the importance of maintaining multiple channels for participation to ensure inclusivity. Lironi stressed that digital tools should complement, rather than replace, traditional forms of engagement.
In sum, the panellists identified several key challenges facing participatory democracy in the EU, including the limited impact of existing tools, complex institutional processes, language and accessibility barriers, geographic and demographic representation issues, resource constraints for participants, and insufficient civic education. But they also offered concrete recommendations for addressing these challenges. These included combining different participation tools, increasing the role of the European Parliament, strengthening local-level participation, improving the communication of outcomes, and developing more proactive engagement strategies.
Scaling Up
The discussion concluded with an exploration of how participatory tools might be scaled to the global level, particularly in the context of UN reform. Daniela Vancic described an ambitious proposal for a World Citizens Initiative modelled on the ECI, which would require five million signatures from 10 member states and could address either the UN Security Council or General Assembly. While such an initiative would be non-binding, Vancic argued that it could play a crucial role in agenda-setting and giving global citizens a voice in international governance.
Elisa Lironi built on this discussion by suggesting that participatory tools could be used to reform UN processes themselves, offering the example of consulting citizens on the Security Council veto power. She emphasised that any global participation mechanisms would need to provide multiple channels for engagement and pay careful attention to inclusion and accessibility. The session ended with a consensus that while participatory democracy tools face significant challenges at transnational levels, they remain essential for legitimate governance. With appropriate modifications and support structures, they can potentially be adapted for global institutions.
Struggles for a More Inclusive and Participatory UN: What Hopes for Reform?
The second session explored ongoing efforts to make the UN more inclusive and participatory. The panel featured five civil society experts: Jesselina Rana (CIVICUS), Oyebisi B. Oluseyi (Nigeria Network of NGOs), Rebecca A. Shoot (Citizens for Global Solutions), Rodrigo Lima Faliveni (Democracy Without Borders) and Sigrid Kromann Schiøler (Global Focus).
The UN Democratic Deficit
The session began with a discussion of whether the UN has lived up to the promise penned in its Charter’s opening words, “We the Peoples”. Rebecca Shoot provided historical context, noting that the UN Charter was meant to be a living document, as emphasised by US President Harry Truman at its adoption in 1945. She described the UN’s current structure as executive-heavy, lacking proper legislative and judicial balance. The system, she explained, remains largely unchanged since its founding in 1945 – for which only 50 countries and four women were present – and includes embedded elements that reflect victor’s justice.
Rodrigo Lima argued that while the UN has been instrumental in promoting international cooperation, its democratic deficits have become increasingly evident in its inability to address contemporary global challenges like climate change, pandemics, and global inequality. He identified three main democratic deficits: the lack of direct citizen representation, a state-centric model that prioritises governments over citizens, and the absence of mechanisms for meaningful citizen participation.
Jesselina Rana highlighted the glaring lack of women in UN decision-making positions, noting that in its 80-year existence,a woman has never served as Secretary-General. She emphasised that the UN’s working mechanisms lack transparency and the organisation represents heads of states rather than “we the peoples”. The process for appointing the Secretary-General, she explained, has historically involved backroom deals where the permanent five Security Council members hold disproportionate power.
Sigrid Kromann contextualised the UN’s democratic deficit within broader global trends, citing CIVICUS data that show that only 2.1 per cent of the world’s population live in countries with open civic space. She noted that civil society faces increasing pressure within UN processes, as evidenced by the closed nature of recent events such as COP29 and the Summit of the Future. Despite these challenges, she argued that the UN remains the only viable forum for global governance, even if working with the body sometimes feels like “banging your head against a wall”.
Proposals for Reform
The discussion then turned to specific civil society proposals for reform. Oyebisi Oluseyi and Sigrid Kromann detailed the UNMute initiative, which aims to increase civil society access to UN processes and includes the proposal of a Civil Society Envoy to streamline civil society participation across the system. The initiative, led by civil society organisations in partnership with states such as Costa Rica and Denmark, has also developed a manual with recommendations for improving civil society engagement, including streamlining accreditation processes, providing financial assistance for participation, and addressing visa challenges.
Jesselina Rana discussed the 1 for 8 Billion campaign, which builds on the earlier 1 for 7 Billion initiative, pushing for a more transparent and inclusive process for selecting the UN Secretary-General. The campaign specifically advocates for the appointment of a woman with feminist credentials as Secretary-General, while ensuring a rigorous and transparent selection process. She noted that the campaign has gained support from several member states and is working to build momentum at both global and national levels.
While change may be slow and difficult, the growing appetite for reform and successful examples of past institutional innovations provide reason for hope.
Rodrigo Lima explained the proposal for a UN World Citizens Initiative, modelled on the ECI. The mechanism would allow citizens to place issues on the UN agenda by gathering five million signatures from at least 10 member states. While non-binding, any initiative surpassing this threshold would trigger an obligation for relevant UN bodies to debate and vote on them, with member states required to explain their votes for transparency.
Rebecca Shoot detailed the long-standing proposal for a UN Parliamentary Assembly, which would directly represent citizens rather than governments. She explained that this could be implemented incrementally – initially with members from national parliaments before moving to direct elections, and starting with a consultative role before potentially gaining legislative powers. The proposal has garnered support from individuals in over 150 countries, including 1,600 current and former parliamentarians.
Reasons for Hope
The panellists also discussed recent developments at the Summit of the Future. While some saw the summit as disappointing in terms of tangible outcomes, they also noted small signs of progress, such as the inclusion of language on Security Council reform in the Pact for the Future. Rebecca Shoot highlighted recent developments in Security Council reform discussions, including growing support for adding permanent seats for African states and new mechanisms to address veto-power abuse.
Looking forward, the panellists emphasised the need to connect different reform initiatives and work at multiple levels simultaneously. They stressed the importance of building broader coalitions, engaging with friendly member states, and linking international advocacy with national-level democratisation efforts. While acknowledging the significant challenges ahead, particularly given global democratic backsliding, they maintained that continued engagement and pressure for reform remains essential for making global governance more democratic and effective.
The discussion concluded with messages of cautious optimism, emphasising that while change may be slow and difficult, the growing appetite for reform and successful examples of past institutional innovations provide reason for hope. The panellists stressed that civil society must continue to push for democratisation while embodying democratic principles in its own work.
Photo: Jakayla Toney / Unsplash
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