---
title: Démocratie Ouverte
type: research
status: active
country: FR
website: https://www.democratieouverte.org
logo: /assets/org-logos/democratie-ouverte.jpg
contact:
  checked: 2026-07-30
  email: contact@democratieouverte.org
  source: https://www.democratieouverte.org
summary: A French non-partisan association with over 10 years of democratic innovation
  work — experimenting with participatory tools, advising public bodies, and convening
  the French democratic innovation network.
concepts:
- citizens-assembly
- direct-democracy
- e-government
location:
  latitude: 48.8566
  longitude: 2.3522
  name: France
  precision: city
news_page: https://www.democratieouverte.org/le-blog
events:
- date: '2012-01-01'
  title: Founded by a collective of democratic innovators
  url: https://www.democratieouverte.org/qui-sommes-nous
  quote: En 2012, des citoyennes et citoyens engagés, qui portent des projets pour
    transformer notre vieux système politique (comme Parlement & Citoyens, Voxe, ou
    encore Questionnez vos élus), décident de se regrouper et de formaliser leur collectif
    en créant une association
  note: The association's own history describes a collective of engaged citizens forming
    Démocratie Ouverte in 2012 to bring together democratic innovators with researchers,
    professionals, elected officials and citizens.
  proof_level: high
  url_checked: '2026-08-14'
- date: '2016-01-01'
  title: Launched Système D, the first democratic-innovation incubator in France
  url: https://www.democratieouverte.org/qui-sommes-nous
  quote: Avec le soutien de la Caisse des Dépôts, du Crédit Coopératif, d’Accenture,
    de la MGEN, du groupe La Poste et de la Fondation La France s’engage, Démocratie
    Ouverte lance le premier incubateur spécifiquement dédié à accompagner les projets
    d’innovation démocratique.
  note: Démocratie Ouverte launched Système D, described as the first incubator specifically
    dedicated to supporting democratic-innovation projects, with backing from public
    and private partners including the Caisse des Dépôts.
  proof_level: high
  url_checked: '2026-08-14'
- date: '2019-04-25'
  title: France's Convention Citoyenne pour le Climat announced after the Gilets Citoyens'
    open letter
  url: https://www.democratieouverte.org/qui-sommes-nous
  quote: 'Le 25 avril 2019, face à ce mouvement social intense, le Président Emmanuel
    Macron annonce la création de la « Convention Citoyenne pour Le Climat »: 150
    françaises et français tirés au sort durant l''été'
  note: Démocratie Ouverte helped create the Gilets Citoyens collective, whose open
    letter to the government called for a citizens' assembly drawn by lot; President
    Macron announced the Citizens' Climate Convention in response, with several collective
    members joining its governance team.
  proof_level: high
  url_checked: '2026-08-14'
  notable: true
activity:
  manual:
    date: 2026-05-18
    note: 'Latest post: co-présidence engagée pour le renforcement de la démocratie'
    url: https://www.democratieouverte.org/le-blog
  dod:
    checked: 2026-07-05
    date: 2026-07-05
    note: Site confirmed active; DémocraNews newsletter launched 17 June 2026, new
      co-presidency announced 18 May 2026
  rss:
    checked: 2026-08-17
    note: No feed found
  scrape:
    hint: no_markup
    checked: 2026-08-17
    note: News page found, no machine-readable date
last_checked: '2026-07-05'
---

Démocratie Ouverte is a French non-partisan association of general interest that has, for over ten years, tested tools and methods and made proposals to public decision-makers to make governance more transparent, cooperative, and participative. It combines practical experimentation with policy advocacy and network convening.

The organisation runs four main activities: convening the network of democratic innovators in France, experimenting with citizen participation mechanisms through action-research, conducting advocacy with public institutions, and evaluating participatory practices. It operates **DémoMètre**, a platform for testing innovative participatory tools with local governments.

During the Gilets Jaunes movement, Démocratie Ouverte initiated an open letter to the government demanding the creation of a Citizens' Assembly — randomly selected — to address fiscal policy, democracy, and the climate emergency.

## Links

- Website: [democratieouverte.org](https://www.democratieouverte.org)

## See also

- [Citizens' Assembly](../concepts/citizens-assembly.md)
- [Direct Democracy](../concepts/direct-democracy.md)
- [E-Government](../concepts/e-government.md)
- [À Nous La Démocratie!](a-nous-la-democratie.md)