Our News

In this interview, we speak with Mark van der Veken, project leader and participation advisor at the City of Mechelen. The City of Mechelen is committed to inclusivity and the Speak Up project is a good way to ensure that Mechelen can further develop inclusive citizen engagement initiatives....

In this interview, we speak with Katharina Meiners and Daniela Janßen, the participation coordinators at the City Administration of the City of Oldenburg. They highlight Oldenburg’s motivation to join Speak Up and the initiatives that the city of Oldenburg has already been doing....

In this interview, we speak with Signe Bak Jorgenson, who works in the Business and Development department at Skive Municipality. Signe focuses on rural development and citizen engagement, particularly in the context of the green transition. One notable project is the municipality's Climate Villages...

In the Speak Up project we collectively search and develop new methods for strengthening the connection and trust between local governments and citizens. In the province of Drenthe we are researching whether a Citizens’ Assembly can be such an instrument for connected governance....

In this interview, we speak with representatives from the Province of Drenthe. Anne de Zeeuw, Emma Jasperse, and Christiaan Teule shed light on their roles and aspirations within the organization. They focus on bridging the gap between their regional government and citizens, emphasizing the importan...

Central theme: “Lost in transition – participation as key for climate engagement”...

The Climate Villages initiative in Skive Municipality is a new effort aimed at mobilizing two local communities to act collectively for a greener future. This project focuses on involving citizens, associations, businesses, and institutions in shared climate-friendly initiatives to build a sustainab...

In July, the International Youth Think Tank (IYTT) took part in two Speak Up events this summer, hosted by Speak Up partners Malmö and Oldenburg. Three IYTT-youth fellows went to Malmö to pilot a 3 day workshop for young people. The workshop took place during a summer camp which involved 25 young pe...

In this interview Landry Mawungu and Katrijn Goossens from the Hannah Arendt Institute (HAI) share the organisation's motivations as active participants in the Speak Up project. They shed light on their organisation's role in bridging the gap between academic research and practical application. Thro...