Shaping the Future together.
Progressive Democracy Lab
We have invited young, committed people from many countries to share, develop and implement their ideas for the future for a strong democracy and a society based on solidarity. The young idea providers will be supported by professional innovation coaches over a five-month period. Together with a jury, we select ideas whose realisation will contribute to solving pressing social challenges in Germany, Europe or other countries and regions of the world.
The presentation of the The Future Prize for Democracy is a special highlight. With this prize, we honour the winners of the Progressive Democracy Lab.
The video (below) gives a first impression of the Progressive Democracy Lab and provides insights into the ideas of the participants.
The Ideas for the Future
Democracy promises equal opportunities for all, regardless of gender, ethnicity or social background. The team behind this project aims to tackle one aspect of the big picture of equal opportunities in Algeria (and beyond): gender bias in job recommendations, especially in the tech industry. Search engines and apps that advertise specific job opportunities often give recommendations with a strong gender bias. Jobs in the tech industry in particular are more likely to be recommended to men than women. As a result, significantly fewer women apply for these job offers. However, for women in particular, these jobs can mean financial independence.
The project aims to develop an algorithm and possibly even a new app that eliminates this bias and recommends job offers based solely on experience and skills. A fairer labour market is a step towards a fairer society. So maybe we'll soon see more women as CEOs in the big tech companies that impact our lives so much!
#BeyondBias #FairJobOpportunities #GenderEqualityInTech
Project team: Amira Soror Labiod, Fares Ala Eddine Boulahia
In today's society, we often complain about media disinformation and hate speech preventing important debates and our own inability to confront these challenges. We must be clear: We are part of the debate and therefore part of the solution to these problems! But how can we make our voices heard if we lack the knowledge and self-confidence to actively participate in these debates?
The project aims to empower young people in particular to raise their voices against hate speech, prejudice, misinformation and discrimination wherever they encounter such attitudes. The team aims to develop a mobile game with interactive quizzes, discussion simulations, educational content and community engagement. This game empowers discussion, promotes awareness of social justice and encourages players to actively participate in democratic discourse. Maybe in a few months we'll all be more actively participating in our democratic discourse and advocating for social justice!
#QuizGame #Debates #ProgressiveIdeas
Project team: Antonis Galanopoulos, Christos Politis, Iosif Halavazis
Contact: Website
In Chile, political disinterest and the rise of disinformation campaigns on social media have fuelled xenophobic and individualistic narratives. Meanwhile, progressive communication efforts have struggled to reach and engage a broad audience. This development is deepening the social divide in the country and undermining efforts for social justice.
At the centre of the project is a digital persona, derived from Chilean pop culture, to engage different audiences on social media around the issues of migration and public safety. This persona is intended to bring progressive messages into the debates, but not to act as a political actor, but to communicate in such a way that the content resonates with a modern, rather non-political audience. Young people in particular - both Chileans and immigrants - between the ages of 18 and 25 are the target group. The project uses current social media trends to reintroduce progressive values and social justice issues to a wider audience. Maybe we'll be discussing social justice issues with a pop culture icon in the future?
#DigitalContent4Democracy #SocialJusticeGoesViral #TruthTrendsetters
Project team: Tomás Lawrence, Amy Kershenbaum, Estefanía Labrín, Valentina Vieira, Catalina Castex, Patricio Duran
Democratic backsliding in Germany is reflected in the increasing support for right-wing parties, including by young people who feel disconnected from politics and excluded from decision-making processes. Young people in particular often report that they do not feel represented by democratic institutions and that politicians do not take the interests of young people seriously.
To counteract this, the project promotes youth-led participatory budgeting. The aim is to involve young people more closely in democratic processes. The aim is not only to bring politics closer to young people, but also to ensure that politicians (re)learn to recognise and implement the interests of young people. The team invites young people to propose ideas for community design, refine them with experts and take part in a democratic vote on the allocation of funds. This project gives young people a seat at the political table, even if they are not yet eligible to vote. Perhaps our cities and municipalities will represent their young citizens better in the future?
#YouthBudgets #YouthShapeCities #NextGenDemocracy
Project team: Martin Auer, Clara Kallich, Sina Scholzen, Hanno Henninger, Tommy Vi
The Winning Idea: Social Media Pop Culture — Bisagra (Chile)
The jury's reasons for the award decision:
What if democracy didn’t look like politics? What if it lived inside memes, K-pop, football, and reality TV — right where people actually pay attention?
That’s not a utopia. That’s Bisagra.
At a time when far-right narratives are winning elections around the world and algorithms systematically silence progressive voices, Bisagra is doing the exact opposite: they’re reclaiming digital space.
With humor, with research, with culture — and with a clear mission to make democracy visible again where it’s often invisible.
This team combines cultural instinct with strategic precision. Their formats are original, their impact is measurable, their approach is scalable.
And most importantly: they reach the people , no political message normally gets through to.
That’s why we are convinced :
If we want democracy to survive the algorithm,
If we want not just to defend democracy, but to renew it — we need projects like Bisagra.
It’s bold. It’s smart. And it’s working.
Democracy needs new paths — and Bisagra has found one.