A New Paradigm: Understanding Logo Democracy

In the fabric of society, paradigms are the fabric that shapes the way we perceive and understand the world around us. A paradigm is not simply a set of rules, but a lens through which we view reality.

A paradigm, at its core, is a widely accepted model or pattern that influences how we view and approach a specific topic. It is the basis of our beliefs, values and, in the context of democracy, how we understand citizen participation and decision-making.

Why Logo Democracy is a New Paradigm?

Beyond being a specific model, Logo Democracy represents a new way of conceiving the exercise of democracy. It is based on the premise that political decisions should not be limited to a closed set of representatives, but rather should be a broad and diverse reflection of the population.

How can we enhance communication between citizens and between citizens and their representatives, in the complex process of making rational decisions aimed at the good of the majority?

Democracy is a political system that is based on the participation of citizens in decision-making. This participation is carried out through different mechanisms, such as voting, public debate and political representation.

Democracy = Communication

Communication is essential for the functioning of democracy. Communication allows citizens to express their opinions and preferences, and the government to listen to and respond to them.

At the heart of Logo Democracy is the fundamental conception that democracy is an uninterrupted conversation between citizens and their government. This model not only facilitates this dialogue, but perfects it.

Exploring the Model

Democracy is a political system based on citizen participation in decision-making. However, citizen participation is not always easy or effective. In some cases, citizens may lack the information or knowledge necessary to make informed and responsible decisions.

One way to improve citizen participation is to segment, that is, group by one or more common characteristics, in this case, distinguish between two types of decisions: those that require technical knowledge to be made responsibly and those that represent personal preferences.

On the other hand, there are decisions that reveal individual preferences between several options.

At Logo Democracy, we believe in the power of democracy and the importance of finding more efficient and equitable ways to express the will of a community.

Preferences

One of the tools we propose to improve the exercise of democracy is Quadratic Voting, an innovation that has the potential to revolutionize the way we participate as citizens in building our community.

What is Quadratic Voting?

Quadratic Voting is a method of collective decision-making that allows voters to express their preference not only by selecting one option, but also by the intensity of that preference.

In Quadratic Voting, each voter has a limited number of votes, which can be assigned to the different options available. The cost of a vote increases quadratically with the number of votes assigned to the same option.

How does it work?

An interesting application of this technique could allow a community to define the legislative agenda for their country for the following year.

Eric Glen Weyl is an American economist who works at Microsoft Research. He received his Ph.D. in Economics from Princeton University in 2008. He is also a professor at the University of Chicago.

Who created it?

Steven P. Lalley is an American statistician and mathematician. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University in 1981. He is a professor of statistics at the University of Chicago.

The goal of Quadratic Voting is to allow voters to express not only their preferences, but also the intensity of those preferences, providing a more nuanced and equitable method for decision-making in democratic contexts.

Potential Impact for Democracy

1. Enhanced Representativity

Quadratic voting enables voters to express not only their preferences but also the intensity of those preferences. This leads to a more accurate representation of the popular will, as citizens can assign higher scores to options they consider more important.

2. Reduced Polarization

By allowing voters to express nuances in their preferences, quadratic voting can contribute to the reduction of political polarization. Candidates and proposals that appeal to a variety of voters may be more successful, fostering collaboration and consensus.

3. Encouragement of Citizen Participation

The ability to express the intensity of preferences may motivate citizens to participate more actively in the electoral process. Feeling that their votes have a more significant impact is likely to increase civic participation.

4. Informed Decision-Making

By allowing voters to assign scores to options instead of simply choosing one, quadratic voting encourages reflection and deeper consideration of available choices. This can lead to more informed and thoughtful decisions.

5. Greater Equity in Decision-Making

Quadratic voting addresses the limitations of other voting systems by providing a more equitable and flexible approach. It allows voters to express their preferences more comprehensively, avoiding certain distortions associated with more traditional systems.

Decisions that do require knowledge

Logo Democracy reimagines the very fabric of representation, placing knowledge, responsibility, and community at the heart of legislative decisions.

Politicians

The first group is your usual representatives. We imagine a scenario in which career politicians are more than just representatives, but also informed and responsible professionals.

Expert Panel

In order to ensure that reason and the state of the art are present in each legislative project, a second group will be formed from a panel of experts composed of academics, researchers and professionals with experience in fields relevant to the bill voted on.

Virtual Congress

Inspired by Athenian democracy, the Virtual Congress is made up of randomly selected citizens.

Logo Democracy rises as a new paradigm in this context, not only as a defined model, but as a revolutionary vision that redefines the relationship between society and its government.

This new paradigm arises from the need to overcome the limitations and deficiencies of traditional systems.

For example, by directly consulting the community to define the agenda of the congress for the next year, each citizen has the opportunity to express their priorities without the need for advanced technical knowledge.

This is why we propose an alternative for each of these decisions, seeking to strengthen citizen participation and ensure that every citizen feels represented in the decisions that shape our society.

For example, voting on a tax law requires understanding the law's potential effects on the economy and citizens.

This means that voters must carefully consider the importance of their preferences when assigning their votes.

We advocate citizen participation, combining knowledge, responsibility and representation. With this objective, we propose 3 groups of people as representatives of a community, for each bill that is voted on in Congress.

We believe in engaging the community in choices that reflect these personal preferences, where every voice matters and every choice enriches the diversity of our society.

"Democracy can only function if there is a public space in which citizens can debate and make joint decisions."

Jürgen Habermas

It is important to distinguish between two types of decisions: those that require technical knowledge to be made responsibly and those that represent personal preferences.

Decisions that require technical knowledge are more difficult for citizens to make, as they involve understanding the potential impacts of the decision.

To this end, we propose a radical change in their incentive model, linking their salary to their performance, assessed on the one hand based on their knowledge of the laws they legislate, measured through knowledge tests, and on the other, based on their active participation in voting. In this scenario, abstention is no longer an option if they want to receive their full remuneration.

Their technical knowledge and experience enrich the decision-making process, ensuring an informed and well-founded approach not only through their direct participation in the votes, but also indirectly in the creation of E-learning courses aimed at training both politicians and representatives of the virtual congress on the bill in which they participate.

However, participation goes beyond chance: these citizens, to be effectively integrated, must pass a course designed specifically for each law by the panel of experts.

The course, developed by academics from top universities, aims to ensure a thorough understanding of the decisions taken by the Virtual Congress, just as it happens with career politicians. In addition, an incentive model is established that encourages participation in the Virtual Congress through a payment for those who approve the course of the bill and participate in the votes.

You can find the explanation of this formula in the video below.