Topic

Society

Commentary

Europe’s democratic resilience requires introspection, clear-sightedness and reimagination

The European Democracy Shield (EUDS) is being prepared to bolster the continent’s democratic resilience. If it isn’t to become one of innumerable democracy initiatives, EU institutions need to be clear-sighted about the causes and stakes of our present moment.

Imaginaries on Sustainability Transformation – Report outlines three positive futures

Imagining futures where society has successfully undergone a sustainability transformation helps us envision a world in which today’s major negative trends have been brought under control. But what kind of positive futures have been proposed in recent years? At the request of the Finnish Expert Panel for Sustainable Development, Demos Helsinki conducted a literature review and drafted three preliminary visions of such futures.

Care, ageing, and how to amplify our imagination

How do societies make most of the extraordinary good luck of ever-longer life expectancies? How can nations be strategic as they manage the huge demographic shifts of the years ahead? How do we handle the transition of care needed over the next few decades? Demos Helsinki Fellow, Sir Geoff Mulgan, is unpacking these questions below in a personal and cross-functional account.

We need less data, more conversation

When trying to measure and predict human behavior, data must be enriched with ideas and emotions. The case of COVID-19 showed the limits of quantitative methods, as expert echo chambers were unable to translate the data into conversations that could ultimately lead to action.     By Angeliki Vourdaki

Rethinking the social contract in the post-pandemic world

What tensions shake the foundations of our social contract, and how do we renew it? The Covid-19 crisis has revealed the desire, need, and capacity for change in the general public and governments. In the past, the social contract has allowed us to translate tensions into opportunities around which we…

Finnish education system: a success story rooted in humility

The Finnish education system is widely acknowledged as one of the best in the world. It has been studied and celebrated by filmmakers, journalists, researchers, educators, and policymakers. Finnish students have been front-runners in every PISA test since 2000. Ninety-three per cent of Finns graduate from university or At the…

Publications

Revitalising and protecting European democracies

The European Democracy Shield is a timely and commendable initiative aimed at addressing the EU’s growing democratic challenges. However, it would benefit from a more human-centered approach focusing on citizen participation, civil society engagement, and more nuanced policies on digital regulation.

Governing with citizens: Embedding democratic innovations into societies  

The answer isn’t less democracy, but more. New participatory and deliberative processes aimed at involving citizens in decision-making are gaining traction across Europe, but their long-term success depends on how well they are embedded into the public administration and society.  

Vision Paper: Care – from crisis to transition

Public debate in Finland suggests that care is in crisis, but “crisis” and a fixation on resourcing care services do not capture the full picture of why and how our need for care has changed and how we can meet that need. This publication by Demos Helsinki identifies that the care crisis signals the need for a care transition in which care cannot be confined to industrial frameworks.

Projects

WELGO — Safeguarding welfare in times of pandemics

Demos Helsinki has partnered with a consortium of researchers to identify the ideas, structures and collaborations needed to manage future health crises in a project called WELGO. The WELGO project is funded by the PANDEMICS programme of the Finnish Strategic Research Council. Within WELGO, Demos Helsinki conducts scientific research together…

People

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