Intergenerational Dialogue for Democracy

"Democracy is about intergenerational equity, while a state of intergenerational equity strengthens the resilience of democracy." - Andrew Bradley, Director and Head of the Office of International IDEA to the European Union

This paper explores ways to bring members of all age groups into the political process and to find mechanisms for cooperation within democratic governance processes. To explore ways to facilitate the inclusion of the intergenerational perspective, the Office of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) to the European Union held 3 roundtables on November 16 2015, May 31 2016, and November 15 2016. At the first roundtable, stakeholders identified key priorities for an intergenerational dialogue framework. The second and third roundtables served as feedback discussions on the Discussion Paper, which frames the intergenerational democratic deficit. Also included here is the Dialogue Paper, which provides practical advice for policy formulations that could help establish a new solidarity between generations. Key recommendations include the need to integrate this intergenerational dialogue within European Union (EU) social and economic policies, redefine citizen education in European countries, and establish a platform for dialogue on democracy between the younger and older generations that would develop inclusive transformative strategies and perspectives for the benefit of all citizens.

As is explained here, the elder generation comprises the fastest-growing age group in Europe; the proportion of elderly people has increased significantly compared to the younger generation. For young people, the changing demographics has reduced their influence on the political process. "The distribution of power in society prevents less powerful generations from having an equal voice in the political process and benefiting from fair policies that do not favour more privileged groups." Some political actors have begun to take advantage of this situation by overwhelmingly focusing on the elderly vote, and considering that government policies generally favour those who elect them, there is a need to prevent conditions that would spur intergenerational conflict. "The principles of intergenerational justice embedded in a broader framework of intergenerational dialogue for democracy could promote the balanced distribution of resources and life opportunities between generations."

The paper describes the emerging social conflict between young people and the elderly, describing various inclusion barriers that prevent both the young and the elderly from fully participating in institutional politics. Participation - "a form of learning together" - builds trust and allows for the open resolution of latent or manifest conflicts between social groups in a non-zero-sum manner. Higher levels of participation across generations are therefore not only crucial for the legitimacy of contemporary democracies and democratic governance, but are also instrumental in preventing such conflicts from arising. To address this problem, one approach is for the political process to adapt to changes emerging from developments in information and communication technology (ICT) and its appropriation. The political identity and attitudes of young people are shaped less than previously by social ties to their family, neighbourhood, school or work, and more by the manner in which they participate in the social networks they co-create. A phenomenon of networked individualism can be observed, in which the internet plays a central role in individuals' political engagement. In this political context, the internet should be harnessed as a tool to improve the political participation of young people not only to allow them to stand on an equal footing with other age groups, but also to promote dialogue with other generations, because their social experience online is equally important to that of offline.

Intergenerational initiatives to promote civic engagement and improve the quality of democratic governance can be grouped into 3 categories, presented along with a list of proposed mechanisms that takes into account bottom-up (grassroots-level) and top-down (systemic-level) approaches to facilitating intergenerational dialogue for democracy:

1. Strengthening the ties between generations by integrating intergenerational principles into public policy processes at all levels - sample action: Include representatives of different generations in working bodies of representative organs and nominate representatives responsible for the young and the elderly in representative organs.
2. Promoting an intergenerational vision by educating society about the message, rationale, and importance of the intergenerational perspective - sample actions: Support community media programmes that promote intergenerational dialogue, and develop digital tools that support the intergenerational dialogue, voice mutual concerns, and facilitate online interaction.
3. Encouraging citizen participation in communities by developing the infrastructure for intergenerational activities - sample action: Promote the shared use of facilities and spaces to create the opportunity for formal and informal dialogue across generations.

The paper concludes by exploring potential measures to create opportunities to promote an intergenerational dialogue at the EU level. "Article 11 of the Lisbon Treaty represents an important step forward in promoting the intergenerational dialogue because it provides a legal basis for civil dialogue and a clear obligation of EU institutions. The article recognizes that the active participation of all citizens is instrumental in achieving good governance and democratic processes in the EU. Civil dialogue is thus one of the most important mechanisms to ensure the inclusion of the intergenerational perspective in EU policymaking and implementation....The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (particularly Goal 16), aims to build inclusive societies and effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels." Several ideas are shared, such as creating an EU-wide platform for intergenerational dialogue supported that would allow young and elder generations to voice their concerns in the EU. This platform could facilitate dialogue between different generations and stakeholders through various mechanisms (e.g., surveys, meetings, roundtables, citizen panels, and advisory councils), with the aim of achieving high levels of informed citizenry, shared decision-making, and the integration of intergenerational justice principles into EU governance.