Common Ground

In border regions, a united Europe is part of everyday life. People often live and work naturally on both sides of the border. Yet these areas also face unique challenges - such as differing administrative systems or misaligned public transport schedules.

How can regions grow closer together? To strengthen democracy in Germany and Europe, Common Ground brings people together across borders and fosters meaningful participation in local communities. Whether through citizen forums, shared picnics, or cross-border bike tours, residents are actively involved, and new forms of participation are tested—boldly, creatively, and with visible success.

To receive funding, municipalities or districts had to form partnerships with civil society actors and public authorities from neighboring countries. Each region chose its own focus topic. Over the course of three years, the regions were closely supported by our implementation partner, the nexus Institut. Key objectives included:
•    Systematically testing deliberative participation processes across national borders
•    Building participation skills within politics and administration
•    Encouraging citizens to engage in sustainable political involvement
•    Establishing lasting participation structures in border regions
•    Improving knowledge and learning exchange between border regions

How can citizen participation succeed when conditions differ from country to country?
A key element of Common Ground was understanding the specific participation cultures in each region. Experts from the participating countries examined legal and cultural differences and documented their findings in country reports. The pilot phase was a shared learning journey, with insights summarized in a scientific report.

Language was a central challenge. While simultaneous interpretation was essential for large events, the projects developed creative solutions for smaller groups—such as language buddies or monolingual working groups led by multilingual facilitators. In the tri-national project Climate Change and Health, digital tools and online formats were indispensable due to the region’s size and population of over 4 million.