A Brave New Dawn? Digital Cakes, Cloudy Governance and Citizenship á la Carte

Abstract

In his kick-off contribution Orgad notes that the future of citizenship is dynamic and multi-layered. Yet so is the present, and so has been its past. The key question is whether we are ready to embrace a new approach to citizenship, based on ‘smart contracts’ operating in cyberspace and regulating needs of individuals, just as a business model would do. Even if digital technologies bring along numerous benefits we have to recognise that their á la carte approach is hardly conducive to the creation of a community of shared values among members. That is, it is hardly conducive to citizenship.