Team Europe Democracy Initiative - TED

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Working Group 2: Political and Civic Participation

The Team Europe Democracy Network (TEDN) is a core pillar of the Team Europe Democracy (TED) initiative. It provides an operational interface connecting EU institutions, Member States and democracy practitioners (+110 organisations) to share expertise and evidence-based assessment in advancing democracy support and coordination.

The Network is structured around three thematic Working Groups (WG):

  • WG1: Rule of Law and Accountability 
  • WG2: Political and Civic Participation 
  • WG3: Media and Digital 

Working Group 2: Political and Civic Participation

Civic engagement concept icon Royalty Free Vector Image

WG2 serves as a platform for more than +70 members to exchange experience, test policy and programming ideas and strengthen coordination on political and civic participation as a core condition for resilient democratic systems. It supports mutual learning and applied policy dialogue across contexts, including fragile and rapidly evolving political environments.

Since its establishment in September 2023, WG2 has prioritised four interlinked thematic areas that contribute to SDG 5, 10, 11, 16 and 17:

  1. Inclusive participation of women, youth, marginalised groups
  2. Strengthening of civic space
  3. Resilient local democratic governance
  4. Engagement in-between election cycles

Purpose and Strategic Contribution

Inclusive political and civic participation is a foundational condition for effective democracy support, as well as for legitimate, inclusive and stable governance systems. WG2 functions as a collective knowledge hub, identifying entry points for coordinated EU and Member State engagement and supporting context-sensitive programming in politically complex and fragile environments.

In synergy with WG1 and WG3, WG2 reinforces a systemic approach to democracy support, where civic and political participation links rule of law, transparency and information integrity.

Expected outcomes include:

  • stronger inclusive and participatory policy and programming approaches 
  • improved coordination and joint action among stakeholders 
  • more informed and coherent engagement in fragile, contested and restricted contexts 

Governance and Structure

WG2 is co-chaired by: Belgium and Ireland

Guided by six thematic leads: 

  • ALDA - European Association for Local Democracy
  • EADI - European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes
  • ECES - European Centre for Electoral Support
  • PLATFORMA - Pan-European coalition of local and regional governments
  • OXFAM (Intermón)
  • ECDPM - European Centre for Development Policy Management

These organisations ensure the WG remains grounded in local realities, informed by evidence and aligned with both policy and practice.

Repository of WG2 Activities and Products (2024 - present)

Context Setting  

These resources set the strategic and operational context for WG2 by bringing together practitioner and policy perspectives on strengthening democratic resilience through coordinated Team Europe action on political and civic participation, highlighting how shared approaches can respond to democratic backsliding and geopolitical pressures while advancing participatory democracy through peer learning and emerging alliances.

Inclusive Participation

Identification of practical barriers and policy responses to improving participation of marginalised and underrepresented groups in democratic processes. 

Civic Space

Analysis of different European and Member State approaches to addressing restrictions on civic space and outlines potential coordinated responses. 

Examination how shifting narratives around civil society affect legitimacy, funding and operational space for civic actors. 

Local Democratic Governance

An exploration of how local governance and community systems, actors and partnerships can strengthen participatory approaches, democratic resilience and good governance, while improve service delivery and support inclusive economic development in fragile contexts.

Engagement in-between Election Cycles

Examines how democratic engagement, civic education, information integrity and institutional accountability can be sustained between electoral cycles to safeguard electoral integrity and strengthen participation.