Supporting participatory citizenship insights from LXAmanhã platform

Abstract

Participation in decisions surrounding city-related interests promotes transparency of governance, enables progress, democracy and enhances the empowerment of citizens as central elements in a political, economic and cultural context. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the relevance of online digital platforms to enhance participatory citizenship in the current social, economic and political fabric of cities, through the analysis of a case study. In this way, this paper focuses on the case study of the LXAmanhã platform, as part of an on-going research on online platforms to support participatory citizenship. The design and functionality of the platform were analysed, as well as the data related to the projects submitted between 2012 and 2016. The results translate into insights and thoughts regarding citizens’ participation in the platform, platform mechanisms and features and technological resources for the future. However future work is still needed, it was possible to conclude that the main challenge for these platforms is sustaining the community participation and significant engagement.