Promoting local democracy: The experience in ALDA – European Association of Local Democracy

The purpose of this dissertation is to give a contribution to the study of Multi Level Governance and the perspective of Local Democracy intended as a concrete development of citizens’ participation in the decision-making process. The way this bottom-up approach is so successful, is the result of the correct identification of the real needs of the civil community. The analysis wants to study the concrete support that Local Democracy Agencies, European Associations, NGOs, and even organisms like interest groups and think tanks, could give in the field of promoting Local Democracy. This study developed the assumption that those actors are fundamental for the relevance of this research, especially when their activity is observed as an extension of the representative power. The main objective of those LDAs, and the main goal of ALDA – European Association of Local Democracy, is the promotion of “good governance” and the identification of the best techniques to promote public policy. This research wants to emphasize how ALDA is effective in its work and how the representative power of common civil societies has been associated with the management of European projects with the sole purpose of creating a line of intermediation between different subjects and actors. The dissertation will tackle different approaches and it will support the positive policy outcomes resulting from the concrete engagement of citizens and local authorities in the decision-making process.