Demokrative - initiative for political education was founded by eight enthusiasts in 2016 in a seminar room at ETH Zurich. Dr Rebecca Welge and Dr Sabine Jenni initiated the foundation to create a vessel for their first joint project in civic education, the Democracy Building Blocks.

From the beginning it was clear that many more ideas and people were looking for such a 'vessel'. For this reason, Demokrative was conceived and organised in a way that it can and should become a carrier, platform and network for other projects, initiatives and people.

Foto: Vereinsjubiläum 2021

Since its foundation, the association has slowly and steadily evolved. Important milestones were the first workshops with school classes in German-speaking Switzerland through the project Building blocks of democracy in 2017; the go-ahead for the Demogames project in autumn 2019; the expansion of the management board, the implementation of an office and the tax exemption due to non-profit status in 2021.

Today, the association has around 30 members, a five-member board, a small office team led by co-founder Sabine Jenni, and a handful of other volunteers who work on projects and in the administration of the association.

Instead of an office, Demokrative maintains the Demokrative Workshop, a virtual platform to save on administrative and fixed costs. The association's headquarters are in Bern.

[Here] you can find our statutes.