The following ideas aim to amplify citizen participation in democracy through Society Speaks, powered by Pol.is and other tools. By leveraging existing platforms, creating innovative new mechanisms, and integrating smart technology, we can encourage thoughtful discussion and ultimately drive real policy change.
- Create Profiles for Podcasters, Influencers, and News Orgs: Develop profile and company pages for well-known podcasters, influencers, and news organizations. This will allow these key figures to host their own discussions on Society Speaks, powered by Pol.is.
- Build a Media Company: Establish a media company centered on facilitating nuanced discussions. The goal is to leverage the Pol.is platform to host well-rounded debates, foster audience engagement, and encourage informed participation by providing a space for influencers and media outlets to bring their audiences into policy conversations.
- Pol.is API Integration: Integrate Society Speaks with the Pol.is API to enhance the platform's functionality. This could enable a seamless connection between discussions and policy initiatives. For example, there's evidence that the Netherlands is actively building a Pol.is API (“https://api.partici.app/api/conversations/8vwsnjphnz”). By integrating with this or similar APIs, Society Speaks can automate the creation and integration of public conversations.
- Participate Instead of Prove: Replace CAPTCHAs with a short participation prompt. Instead of identifying traffic lights in a grid, users could be asked to quickly respond to a discussion question. This method would not only verify users but also gently pull them into existing discussions, raising overall participation and contributing to meaningful debate. It's a win-win: increased platform engagement and a much more interesting anti-bot mechanism.
- Serve Discussions Instead of Ads: Create a discussion ad network. Instead of serving traditional ads, Society Speaks would feature sponsored discussions. Companies and organizations could sponsor thoughtful, structured discussions around specific topics. This could form the basis for a sustainable business model, while giving people an opportunity to engage with issues in-depth. Care must be taken to ensure sponsors do not sway or corrupt the content of the discussions, maintaining transparency and trust.
- Lottery for Policy Initiatives: Establish a lottery mechanism to fund policy initiatives. Participants could buy into the lottery, and the funds would be allocated to projects and initiatives informed by Pol.is discussions on Society Speaks. Discussions could help prioritize the projects that receive funding, making the process democratic and community-driven. This way, people have a direct say in deciding which policy or community projects get supported.
- Membership-Driven Platform: Create a membership organization committed to fostering nuanced, intellectually rigorous discussion. Members would support Society Speaks financially, but also have privileges like voting on featured topics or having exclusive access to premium discussions. The goal is to make the organization self-sustaining and attract members who are passionate about high-quality discourse and real societal impact.
- Analyze Discussions for Policy Insights: Aggregate and analyze data from Pol.is discussions to develop data-driven recommendations for policymakers. Use the platform as a means to produce "citizen consensus reports" that could be shared with local and national governments to influence policy-making directly.
- Government Partnerships: Partner with municipalities and local governments to use Society Speaks as a civic engagement tool. Offer Pol.is-powered discussions for local issues and initiatives, giving citizens an opportunity to engage directly with local governance, while governments benefit from actionable insights from public sentiment.
- Host Digital Referendums: Use Pol.is and Society Speaks to pilot citizen referendums on specific community issues. Discussions could help shape referendum questions, and the platform could be used to conduct digital voting, making the process more participatory and transparent.
- Gamify Participation: Introduce a leaderboard to reward users who participate meaningfully in discussions. Highlighting contributors who foster respectful and constructive discourse can help incentivize healthy engagement, build user loyalty, and increase awareness of pressing issues. Reward top participants with badges or even small grants for civic initiatives.
- Develop a Mobile App: To lower barriers to participation, create a mobile app for Society Speaks. This would allow citizens to easily join discussions, respond to prompts, and stay engaged with civic matters on the go, increasing accessibility and participation.
- Engage Educational Institutions: Partner with schools and universities to use Society Speaks as an educational tool. Encourage students to participate in real discussions about societal issues. This would help them learn about democracy and civic engagement while contributing to meaningful conversations.
- Push Notifications for Important Topics: Enable users to subscribe to topics they care about and receive notifications when there are important discussions happening. This way, users are more likely to participate in discussions relevant to their interests, boosting engagement at key times.
- Create Infographics and Summaries: Generate visual summaries and infographics based on Pol.is discussions to make results more digestible. Visual summaries could make the consensus and main ideas from discussions easy to understand, making it easier to share findings with decision-makers and the public.
This section provides a roadmap for our most important features. Contributions are welcome—feel free to join us in turning these ideas into reality!
- Integrate Pol.is API to enable seamless conversation automation (Q1 2025).
- Develop profiles for influencers, integrate Pol.is API (Q1 2025).
- Replace CAPTCHA verification with a discussion prompt (Q2 2025).
- Build a discussion ad network to serve sponsored discussions (Q3 2025).
- Run a policy funding lottery mechanism based on user engagement (Q3-Q4 2025).
- Develop a mobile application for wider accessibility.
- Create government partnerships for community engagement on local issues.
Society Speaks is committed to building a thriving, transparent, and supportive community. We value every contribution, feedback, and use of the platform. We encourage everyone to use the software freely and ethically, and to share back improvements so everyone benefits. Our goal is to align our success with the success of our community. 💡
These ideas are designed to leverage Society Speaks as a tool for real civic engagement, ensuring the community can actively participate in democratic discussions that lead to genuine policy impact. What are your thoughts on these directions? Are there specific ones you feel most excited about or would like to explore further?