Until recently, Innsbruck’s participation team had only managed to engage youth who had effectively self-selected by joining existing interest groups. This meant they were missing out on capturing a broader plurality of youth opinion.
But a successful test with a QR code that saw 200+ people give their feedback on a public park confirmed their hunch: “Digital participation tools were the missing piece of the puzzle for reaching young people,” explains Lukas Weiss, Head of the Department for Citizen Participation and Participatory Urban Design at the City of Innsbruck.
As a university city, where about 30,000 of Innsbruck’s 130,000 inhabitants are students, it was clear that Innsbruck couldn’t afford to go without youth engagement any longer.
After deciding to invest in a comprehensive digital participation solution, Innsbruck launched its Go Vocal platform in January 2025. After launching proposals, 1,000 residents registered on the platform within its first weeks.
But they also made a decision that would become a game-changer for youth participation: offering proposals, which allow residents to submit their ideas on any topic that interests them.
“Proposals are a really good method for attracting different people who might not be into public engagement yet,” says Participation Officer Sarah Rasi.
“Maybe people had ideas for the city before, but didn't really have a place where they could put them. Now they're quite happy to have this place where they can put their ideas.”
“Young people started to submit their proposals and share their proposals to their friends to get the votes that they needed,” says Sarah. “And due to that, many young people started to register on the platform”, exposing them to more of Innsbruck’s engagement opportunities in the process.
Once a proposal has been shared on the platform, the submitter must collect a specified number of votes for it to be forwarded to the responsible municipal department. “Most of the time it's discussed by politicians and department staff,” says Sarah, “and then they tell us whether it can be implemented or not. And if not, they have to tell us the reason, so we can make it transparent on the platform.”
Innsbruck resident Hanspeter Pomella, age 29, submitted a proposal to install bouldering rocks in city parks that could be used for free outdoor exercise.
In his proposal, Hanspeter says, “I mentioned that since these stones would be accessible for free, they would help to connect people on low incomes to sports. And there is also the social aspect: it would broaden the range of outdoor sports available in public.”
To drum up support for his proposal, Hanspeter shared his proposal page in a WhatsApp group with 20-30 friends, many of whom enjoy bouldering. Then he shared it in his student accommodation WhatsApp group, “and in less than 24 hours, I already had the 50 votes!”
Since there are already three parks in the city with small or even larger bouldering options, the city decided not to install additional bouldering stones for now. However, two parks and public spaces will be redesigned in the next two years, and during these projects, the option of installing a new bouldering stone, as suggested by Hanspeter, will be examined.
For Hanspeter, even this is meaningful: he says that just having the option of submitting proposals “makes your city more attractive, which means that you connect with it more.”
Sarah, Lukas, and their team knew that social media would be key to promoting the new engagement opportunities to young people, so they used a range of channels to spread the word.
But they also thought carefully about the impact of visual communication. The Innsbruck team commissioned a slick video commercial for their engagement platform, to be shared on social media, as well as in every one of the city’s cinemas. Through this lens, engagement in Innsbruck would be inspiring and future-focused.
With a striking visual identity that continues on the platform itself, they ensured a cohesive design that Innsbruck’s youth can easily identify with.
In Innsbruck’s previous resident engagement initiatives, which used analog engagement methods, there was often an overrepresentation of older people. Now on their new digital platform, the reverse is true.
“We’re actually quite happy with this over-representation of younger people,” explains Lukas. “I don’t see any reason to change this, because we know older people will keep engaging with the analog methods.”
At the same time, “we also saw an elderly woman collecting votes for her proposal on Facebook,” says Sarah. “So it doesn’t only have to be younger people using digital tools. It can be anyone.”
It’s all about offering a selection of engagement methods to ensure residents with different needs all have a chance to be heard.
The team is busy following up on the proposals submitted so far – a critical element in building resident trust.
For example, one resident submitted a proposal to install bottle holders for trash cans to make recycling easier. It turned out politicians had already been discussing the idea, so when a pilot project launched, Sarah shared the news directly on the resident’s proposal to keep interested users in the loop. Demonstrating their ideas in action is a great way to keep residents engaged in the long term.
Lukas says, “We are also seeking out those proposals that are actually easy to implement but haven't received enough votes. Because now we have such a large amount of good ideas that are worth implementing.”
For local governments keen to engage their younger residents, Sarah and Lukas offer some advice:
Ready to boost youth participation in your community? Let’s discuss how Go Vocal’s digital engagement platform can help.
Vanessa's passionate about writing and weaving stories bringing together migration, community, and belonging. Currently you can find her in Berlin, playing around with Alt Text as Poetry.
Vanessa Ellingham is a communications professional with experience in grassroots community organizing, particularly with migrant communities. In 2016 she was part of a team that won the UNAOC Intercultural Innovation Award for this work.
Innsbruck launched a new digital participation platform and smart engagement strategy that finally brought young residents into the center of decision-making. Within weeks, over 1,000 residents registered, with youth now overrepresented thanks to Proposals that they can easily submit, share with friends, and support. This “gamified” dynamic motivates young people to take part and stay engaged.
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