The Agora

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Decidim: a governance-first platform (decidim.org)

submitted 1 year ago by jlj@sh.itjust.works to c/agora@sh.itjust.works

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I've just started looking at Decidim, so this may be a case of everything looking like the nail to its hammer, but, given all the posts about the mechanics of governing this instance already, I wondered whether considering a separate platform specifically designed to address many of these governance-related problems (as I understand it -- again, early days) might be in order.

Decidim might actually be more akin to a sledgehammer in this case, but I figured the point still has merit, as a discussion. There must be other solutions out there too. How does Debian make decisions, for example?

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[–] Seraph089@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

"Sledgehammer" is definitely the word I'd use, but it is an interesting thought. The Agora seems like it'll be plenty for the foreseeable future, but there's a hypothetical future where we outgrow it and need something that scales better.

At a quick glance, Decidim seems like it would be a decent solution if/when we need to upgrade. Free/libre with a focus on transparency is a great start, and it looks like the tools are pretty flexible.

But as a counterpoint, there's a lot to be said for keeping governance here as long as it's sustainable. Removing as much friction as possible from voting means more people will participate, and it doesn't get much easier for voters than dropping an "aye" or "nay" comment on a ballot post.

[–] jlj@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 year ago

Definitely take your point about removing friction. Thanks for having a look at the project!

[–] haxe11@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 year ago

I don't know anything about Decidim yet, personally, but I think evaluating options like this is the way to go.

[–] Contextual_Idiot@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 year ago

If we want to have secret ballots for certain votes, like defederation, or removing a mod, this may be the tool to use. I'm not sure that Lemmy has the tools to do this here, where we ensure that only this instance's users can vote. Not yet, anyway.

[–] LudwigvanBeethoven@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 year ago

Checked it out, and to be honest, it is fucking rad (excuse my enthusiastic french). It looks very polished, and – though I recognise that this might be (another) case of tunnel vision – it looks like a great fit for the Agora. Ease of voting is a potential issue, but it looks quite easy on Decidim as well – nothing a good readme can't solve (imhumbleo).