#DemocracyinAction

Services:

Research, Advocacy

Links:

Democracy in Action

Year:

2025 - 2027

Partners:

Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society
Centre for African Development Studies
IMF-CSIC
Jagiellonian University’s Faculty of Management and Social Communication
Magdeburg University of Applied Sciences
Fondazione Santagata
Institute of Public Affairs
DE/MO

#DemocracyinAction (DiA) is a Horizon Europe-funded initiative that brings together researchers, grassroots movements, and policymakers to explore how grassroots culture, arts, and activism fuel democracy. It investigates how these cultures claim space, shift power and strengthen democratic values through 4 research themes: 1) nightivism; 2) women’s rights mobilisation; 3) racial, ethnicity and civic participation; 4) youth and civic education.

VibeLab is a key contributor to the Nightivism research theme, which describes a unique form of activism that emerges during nighttime. It empowers communities to express their voices and advocate for change in innovative ways, often addressing issues that are overlooked during the day. Under this theme, VibeLab will produce a report showcasing the good practices emerging out of nightlife communities that foster democracy.

The research strategy of #DemocracyinAction aligns with the EU’s enshrined principle of subsidiarity, to deliver new insights on how bottom-up arts and culture can channel inclusive political expression and advance societal well-being at a time when democracy faces unprecedented challenges. Pilots covered within the project span democratic and non-democratic contexts from all EU regions, together with case studies from the Americas, Africa, Middle East and Asia. The project also considers online and offline realities as inextricably intertwined, with smartphones forever within reach.