SHAPE develops research-based methods and technologies that can support democratic dialogue. Such solutions are in demand because this dialogue is clearly challenged in several contexts.

The debate on many important topics tends to become polarized, and often the dialogue ends in trench warfare rather than a joint exploration of problems, opportunities, and perspectives. This is evident in discussions on topics such as urban development and the green transition and is a well-known phenomenon on social media.

In SHAPE, we work on various solutions. One example is the exploration of whether and how digital technologies can enhance citizen involvement in urban development. Another example is a simple, non-digital workshop format where citizens are invited to discuss data use and data harvesting, and how these practices affect citizens' trust in the state.