Democracy Defenders Accelerator | DDA

Democracy is in danger, and urgently needs people to defend it.

Our 10-month civic leadership programme for young activists helped to fight the democratic decline.

Why defend democracy?

Over recent years, rising inequality, war, natural disasters and the Covid 19 pandemic have spurred the decline of democratic governance around the world.

But everywhere we look, inspiring activists have been standing up for human rights and environmental protection — demonstrating the vital importance of civil society in these challenging times.

To support and empower even more people to take action in the face of the democratic decline, we have developed the Democracy Defenders Accelerator. This 10-month programme brought together young activists from diverse backgrounds to learn, exchange and grow together.

And together, we became the defenders of democracy.

What is the DDA?

The Democracy Defenders Accelerator aimed to create a world in which active young citizens were empowered to defend the principles of an open society, democratic values and a well-functioning civil society.

In this immersive, hands-on programme, participants learned how to design and deliver civic engagement projects and practise participatory leadership skills — through designing and delivering real-life Civic Initiative Projects. The entire ten-month learning process was supported by mentors and facilitators.

The four main goals of this programme:

  • Open Society and Democratic Values: Discuss and explore democratic values, as well as potential threats and opportunities to democracy in international contexts.
  • Empower Civil Society: Design highly innovative, bottom-up civic engagement initiatives. Gain the confidence to test these ideas in real life to solve communities’ issues on a local, national or global level.
  • Qualitative Participatory Leadership: Learn about participatory leadership principles and values by practising leading a (fictional) organisation.
  • More Collaborative Decision-Making: Learn different decision-making methods to be able to make better collaborative decisions.

 

The DDA consisted of 160 contact hours, made up of workshops and mentoring sessions:

  • 20 online training sessions, held every two weeks, 20 January – 15 November 2023.
  • A 10-day Democracy Defenders Bootcamp, held in person in Estonia, 27 March – 5 April.

Timeline:

DDA is divided into four phases, following design thinking principles.

Phase 1 | Research

Defining the problems for the civic engagement projects

20 Jan – 24 March 2023. Online.

Phase 2 | Bootcamp

An immersive 10-day Democracy Defenders Bootcamp in Estonia

27 March – 5 April 2023. Offline in Tallinn, Estonia.

Phase 3 | Implementation

Implementing the civic engagement projects

21 April – 8 Sept 2023. Online.

Phase 4 | Impact

Measuring the impact of the civic engagement projects

4 Oct – 15 Nov 2023. Online.

Who was the DDA for?

The DDA was aimed at active citizens and community leaders, aged 20-35 with a strong interest in open society, democracy and civil society.

The programme’s target countries are Indonesia, the United States, Albania, Georgia, Estonia and other EU/EEA countries. However, participants from other countries will also be considered.

What did it cost?

The DDA was free of charge, except for the cost of travel and visas to attend the Bootcamp in Estonia. All other costs (such as accommodation, meals and transport during the Bootcamp) were met by the organisers.

Application process

Willing participants applied to the DDA through a competitive selection process.

Applications for the 2023 DDA are now closed.

Funded by:

The DDA is financed by the ACF Fund and the Citizen OS Foundation. ACF’s operator in Estonia is Open Estonia Foundation in cooperation with the Network of Estonian Nonprofit Organizations (NENO).

Projects initiated as part of the DDA programme

Democracy Defenders Accelerator (DDA) was our hands-on programme for civic activists across the world. The participants learned how to design and deliver civic engagement projects and practise participatory leadership skills — through both the running of real-life projects and working on project ideas. The entire ten-month learning process was supported by mentors and facilitators. As a result, 30 young people completed the programme and 17 project concepts were developed and 11 of these initiatives were piloted with real actions already during the programme.

Syscraft

An international team from Canada, Montenegro, Argentina, and the Netherlands developed a concept and prototype to make complex systems easier to understand. The primary goal is to facilitate systems change by fostering greater alignment and collaboration between partners and stakeholders.
Team members: Andee Pittman, Guillermo Martin Croppi, Marijana Sundic, and Mathieu Akko Muus

Harvesting Hope: Europe’s Fight for Food Security

A European peer-to-peer initiative raising awareness about the use of chemicals in agriculture. It calls on decision-makers in Europe to ban harmful chemicals. The project leverages social media and direct networks, offering resources to individuals on how to get involved actively.
Team lead: Onyx / Dimitrios Karagiannidis

Nature and the Woman Marginalised: A Case Study from Cameroon

This project organised gatherings and a workshop to engage women in Cameroon in discussions about climate change. Founded on the principle that climate justice cannot exist without gender justice, the initiative seeks to address gender inequality in climate change decision-making.
Team lead: Ngangjoh Memunatu Riyuh

E-Ranger

A programme in Indonesia aimed at raising awareness about internet privacy among school students. The team, composed of teachers, has developed tools, conducted workshops, and plans to create a curriculum addressing these critical topics in schools.
Team lead: Sam Michael Nugraha Situmorang

Accessibility for PwDs

This project aims to improve access to public transport for people with disabilities in Indonesian cities. Using research and data, the initiative seeks to raise awareness among decision-makers and the public to promote inclusive, democratic decision-making regarding transportation infrastructure.
Team: Luthfy Ramiz, Syifa Annisa, and Gio Pradipta

Enhancing Women’s Civic and Political Engagement via Digital Technology

Initiated in Mexico, this project empowers women as community leaders by recognising their contributions and equipping them with digital tools to enhance civic participation. Workshops and discussions facilitated the exchange of experiences and practices.
Team lead: Mar Marín and her local team

Integration and Trauma Recovery Among Afghan Refugee Women in Italy

Designed to support Afghan refugee women in Italy, this project established a women’s group and hosted workshops to aid integration, cultural adaptation, and trauma recovery. It also aims to raise awareness about the inclusion of Afghan women in Italy.
Team: Sharifa Behzad and local partners in Italy

RED (Raise, Empower, Disseminate) for the Youth

A project in Albania addressing low youth participation due to the lack of a dedicated budget for young people in Kodovjat, a community of 3,500 inhabitants (Census 2011). The team created a calendar of activities to motivate and empower youth, combining democracy, culture, and capacity building.
Team: Nensi Dragoti and local team

ASEAN Youth Week – The ASEAN Youth Advocacy Network Project

This initiative in the Philippines provides civic engagement training for young people across Southeast Asia. It offers a platform for developing advocacy skills to address youth issues in collaboration with networks such as ASEAN and the UN. The project has involved over 600 participants through online and hybrid training.
Team lead: Emmanuel Mirus Ponon and local team in the Philippines

Democracy Literacy for Students

Led by educator Uswatun Hasanah (Anna), this project addresses the lack of political, democratic, digital, and media literacy. Working with 25 young people, it organised school discussions, capacity-building sessions, and student involvement in the Indonesian Opinion Festival.
Team lead: Uswatun Hasanah and students in Central Java, Indonesia

Critical Research for Evidence-Based Policy-Making in Sri Lanka

This project enhances democracy in Sri Lanka by building civil society’s capacity to conduct critical research and engage effectively with legislators. Stakeholder discussions and focus groups map how local government policies impact communities.
Team lead: Pathirannehelage Lakshita Prasad and external team

Additional Project Ideas Developed

Six additional project ideas were developed during the DDA programme, although they were not piloted:

  1. Youth Brain Drain in Albania: Tackling the migration of young people from Albania.
    Team: Brunilda Brati

  2. Digital Literacy for Youth in North Sulawesi: Aiming to improve digital literacy among young people.
    Team: Lei Leily and Cevi Agis Firmansyah

  3. Overall Quality of Democracy in Germany: Reducing radicalisation and polarisation.
    Team: Lukas Crombach, Nadya Melati, Nensi Dragoti, and Rangga A. Akhli

  4. Deja Vu Cycles / Misassessment of Processes in Society: Addressing disinformation in Georgia.
    Team: Smaranda Olariu and Nato Gogrichiani

  5. Engaging Youth to Address Human Rights Violations: Raising awareness about violence against women and supporting victims.
    Team: Gabriela Sulkaj, Erta Allamani, and Neysa Thifal Aurellia Basista

  6. Personal Privacy Awareness in Universities: Promoting personal data privacy among university students.
    Team: Sholahuddin Al-Fatih

 

Impact

The Democracy Defenders Network is our new global community for activists who have participated in Citizen OS civic engagement programmes, as well as like-minded individuals dedicated to promoting democratic values.

This volunteer-driven, participatory network is designed to help members build skills, foster collaboration, and launch new initiatives that enhance democratic participation while amplifying the impact of civil society leaders worldwide.

 

Membership

Membership is free of charge, and the initiative is entirely non-profit!

We need a coordinated effort to:

  • Build the resilience of civil society.
  • Improve the quality of civic space by safeguarding civic freedoms, raising democratic awareness, and enhancing the impact and quality of civil society initiatives.
  • Encourage young people to lead and take the initiative in designing and delivering civic engagement processes.
  • Harness the power of technology to make participation more accessible, deliberative, and outcome-oriented.
  • Initiate strategic and international cooperation to address civic society challenges collectively.

The application process

  1. Fill in the application form, sit back and relax.
  2. The Citizen OS team will get in touch with you to schedule a short online call to get to know each other.
  3. Once the online call is done and there is a good match, your onboarding will start.

 

Quick info

Dates
20 Jan – 15 Nov 2023

Location
Mix of remote (online, every two weeks) and face-to-face (Estonia, 27 March – 5 April 2023)

Costs
Free, except travel and visa costs to enter Estonia

Participants
Young civic activists, primarily from Indonesia, USA, Albania, Georgia, Estonia and other EU/EEA countries.

Information seminar
View the recorded info seminar for interested applicants, partners and media that took place on 1 November.

Get in touch!

Picture of Sara Sinha

Sara Sinha

Project coordinator

With any questions or comments, please contact sara@citizenos.com

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