The IDEU Project – Digitalization and Inclusion in the EU
IDEU aims to gather citizens’ opinions and recommendations regarding the EU’s digital transformation policy that promises to “leave no one behind.” It seeks to build greater understanding of EU digitalization policies through a crowdsourcing approach.
We will ask citizens to share the challenges they face in everyday life due to the lack of digital inclusion, as well as solutions that we can then promote in public policy debates. Our objective is to raise awareness in society about the goals and ambitions of digital transformation at European, national, and local levels, while also encouraging collaboration across various stakeholder groups (NGOs, policymakers, public authorities, academia, media).
The rise of digital inequalities
Disparities in levels of digitalization, particularly inequalities in access to quality digital public services, affect many disadvantaged groups across the EU. This exacerbates social, economic, and political divides and can lead to reduced civic participation, increased mistrust between citizens and public authorities. It also hinders the development of inclusive public policies.
In recent years, several key legislative initiatives have advanced within the EU (the Digital Markets Act, the Digital Services Act, the revised Audiovisual Media Services Directive, the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, etc.), highlighting the growing influence of the digital sector in our societies and in our relationship with public authorities. Yet, the digital divide remains significant and uneven. The rapid evolution of the digital society has a disproportionate impact on certain groups, further intensified by the fast-paced development of the sector.
Public participation in the digital age
We will work to propose new models of cooperation between public authorities and citizens, using digital platforms and solutions tailored to their needs at community, national, and European levels. The success of any public policy and digital civic engagement tool depends on including diverse groups in the dialogue. In parallel, we will support expanding access to digital services, ensuring that they become more accessible and relevant for all citizens.
CRPE is part of a transnational consortium made up of seven civil society organizations from Spain, Germany, Belgium, Croatia, Bulgaria, and Romania.
The project is coordinated by the European Citizen Action Service (ECAS), a pan-European organization based in Brussels, and is implemented together with: ODRAZ (Croatia), ProInfo (Bulgaria), Democracy International (Germany), Science For You – SciFY (Greece), Fundación Cibervoluntarios (Spain).
Implementation period: June 2024 – May 2026
The IDEU project is co-funded by the European Commission through the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme (grant number 101147200).