LiquidFeedback Journeys | Fellow Citizens, As I reflect on the ever-evolving nature of our democratic experiment, I am drawn to a concept that has recently come to prominence—a concept born of American ingenuity, yet refined and implemented with precision by our European counterparts. The idea of Liquid Democracy represents an evolution of the principles we hold dear.
PERYCLES hosts the symposium “Is there hope for deliberative democracy yet? Socio-technical solutions to current political challenges” as part of the 21st annual conference of the Italian Association of Cognitive Sciences (AISC), themed “Connected minds. Dynamic interactions in cognitive, social, and artificial systems.” The symposium explores how deliberative democracy scales in today’s geopolitical climate and in the context of rapidly evolving digital infrastructures. The program features four perspectives from the project.
Digital Democracy Podcast | In this interview, Andreas Nitsche explores liquid democracy as a process. He explains how transitive delegations enable large-scale participation, and how adaptive representation patterns emerge as people adjust their delegation choices over time. Drawing on a recent paper co-authored with Davide Grossi as part of the PERYCLES project, he highlights that transitive delegation does not create runaway power but instead acts as a balancing mechanism. The discussion also touches on recall and suspension in LiquidFeedback before concluding with an examination of delegation cycles.
As part of the German Federal Government’s Open Day on August 23 and 24, 2025, the Federal Foreign Office invited guests to a special “State Visit.” In the Weltsaal, Ulrike Klinger (University of Amsterdam) and Andreas Nitsche (LiquidFeedback, PERYCLES) discussed the question: “Artificial Intelligence – Opportunity or Threat to Democracies?” The conversation was moderated by Siyuan He (Federal Foreign Office).
LiquidFeedback Journeys | LiquidFeedback is a bit like letting every Tom, Dick, and Harry in town have a say in running things, but with a twist. It allows everyone to voice their opinions on issues, big or small, from the comfort of their own homes. But here’s where it gets even more interesting. If you don’t know much about a particular subject, you can pass your vote to someone you trust, someone who knows their onions.
At the Innovationsforum 2025 conference in Berlin, leading figures from politics, business, civil society, academia, and the media came together. The goal of the event was to highlight successful strategies, promote mutual learning, and develop effective solutions to key societal challenges.
The research paper "Delegations as Adaptive Representation Patterns: Rethinking Influence in Liquid Democracy" was co-authored by Davide Grossi and Andreas Nitsche as part of the PERYCLES project. Nitsche presented the paper at this year's European Network for Digital Democracy conference, held on June 12 at the Centre d’Économie de la Sorbonne in Paris. He opened with a thought-provoking challenge:
LiquidFeedback Journeys | LiquidFeedback is a framework for deliberation and collective decision-making designed to facilitate constructive debates. It is one of the most prominent implementations of liquid democracy. This episode will tell the "Story of LiquidFeedback" from its inception in 2009 to its participation in the PERYCLES project from 2025 onward. PERYCLES is funded by the European Union.
LiquidFeedback Journeys | As one of the world's oldest participatory democracies, the Haudenosaunee shaped modern democracy with a system of government centuries ahead of its time. From influencing the U.S. Constitution with principles such as federalism, checks and balances, and bicameralism to their visionary "Seven Generations" approach to sustainability, their legacy is a powerful reminder of the sophistication of indigenous political systems.
LiquidFeedback Journeys | With quill in hand, or by the finger’s touch, the learned and the lowly cast their will upon the waves of this translucent sea, to see it swell and guide the ship of state.
Yet not alone doth each man stand, forsooth! A proxy may he choose, a champion to bear his banner high upon the field.