In June, the German eParticipation program called “Gut Leben in Deutschland” (Live Well in Germany) progressed to its second stage with the opening of dialogue between the Chancellor, Cabinet of Ministers and German citizens.
This global public consultation, initiated by the German government, started in April 2015. It aims at creating a national dialogue on the quality of life in Germany. “The German government aims to identify yardsticks that can be used to pinpoint the many different facets of the quality of life”, according to a statement on the government website. Now members of the government are directly participating in the debate.
Citizens are being asked to answer two questions: “what is personally important for your life?” and “what is for you the quality of life in Germany?”.
Citizens’ ideas and opinions are collected through two channels: on one hand, events are organised “in real life” by institutions, including associations, foundations, trade unions and social welfare organisations. On the other hand, dialogue can also be engaged in through a dedicated website.
A future report and indicators on the quality of life
Among other interests, the government wants to use the data collected in this program to better understand what is important for German people in life. “The German government would like to reach as many people as possible and find out what they think is important. It would like to hear from people with a wide variety of opinions, perspectives and hopes – people who are as different and diverse as Germany itself”, the statement said.
At the end, the information collected thought the physical events and the website will be analysed by independent academics to draw up quality of life indicators, the government said. A report will then be published in October 2015. “The German government will draw up an action plan that will lay out specific steps to further improve the quality of life”, the website said.
To date, 2023 answers and 2292 comments have been added to the debate through the website.