Olivier Schulbaum

What kinds of infrastructures do we need to sustain democratic life in times of crisis? This keynote explores how open technologies, co-governed digital platforms, and knowledge commons can help reimagine participation beyond consultation and toward collective capacity-building.

Drawing on ongoing experiments from across Europe—supported by initiatives like the Convergence of Commoners or INSPIRE—this session reflects on how digital democratic innovation can serve as a driver for institutional change, social justice, and ecological inclusion. Special attention will be given to the role of data: who collects it, who governs it, and how communities can reclaim it as a commons.
The talk will highlight emerging practices that challenge extractive models of civic tech and instead prioritize care, equity, and long-term stewardship.

Why do we still treat civic tech as software, when it should be a social movement? This is an invitation to rethink not just the tools of participation, but the cultures and infrastructures that make democratic futures possible.

About

The Platoniq Foundation designs digital participatory processes and facilitates innovative participation methodologies to help form more democratic societies and organizations, making use of open civic technologies.

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