Connecting participation and e-participation: The use of ICT in the participatory initiatives of Brno

Abstract

Brno is well known in Czechia for its new participatory approach to strategic planning and is the only statutory city to have implemented participatory budgeting on a city level. The main question addressed in this chapter is how these two participatory initiatives were leveraged by ICT tools. The research indicates that despite being exceptional participation cases in the context of Czechia, the e-participation tools were made limited use of in the case of strategic planning project Brno 2050 but played a more central role in the participatory budgeting project. By comparing the two initiatives, the chapter discusses the reasons behind the patterns of uptake and the use of e-participation solutions in the same context.