Opportunities for participation in the city of Aachen
In the jungle of administration and the multitude of possibilities, it can sometimes be difficult to find the right offer or the right participation format for your concerns. Below you will therefore find an overview of the numerous opportunities to get actively involved.
City of Aachen/Jane Kaimer
As a citizen of Aachen, you can influence the decisions of the council and administration not only through local elections.
Citizen participation means the opportunity for all affected and interested citizens to represent and contribute their interests and concerns to public projects.
This refers to the participation or co-design of citizens in the planning and decision-making process through information, consultation or cooperation. A distinction is made here between legally prescribed (formal) participation and more extensive (informal) participation.
The City of Aachen offers opportunities for participation at various spatial levels:
At the city-wide level with various participation formats and open dialogue offerings, and of course also at the level of the city districts and boroughs, via the city districts, the district management, the district conferences and the district fund, there are a wide range of opportunities to help shape your own neighbourhood and implement your own ideas.
The Office for Civic Engagement and Volunteering also supports clubs, associations and initiatives in their activities to strengthen the community and shows that Aachen rightly bears the title of "engaged city".
Our guide will help you classify your concerns and find the right format!
Participation portal
The City of Aachen's participation portal offers all Aachen residents the opportunity to actively participate in administrative and political decision-making processes. This includes formal participation procedures (e.g. in the area of urban and traffic planning), informal dialog opportunities, surveys, events and more.
Citizens' forum
An important political pillar of the citizens' dialog is the Citizens' Forum - a committee of the Aachen City Council - which offers a pioneering form of direct consultation between politics, administration and citizens on current citizens' applications, plans, projects and resolutions.
Children's forum
The Children's Forum offers children the opportunity to contribute their concerns and ideas to local politics and to actively experience democratic processes.
Youth participation
The aim of youth participation is to promote the active involvement of young people in Aachen in political and social decision-making processes, to incorporate their perspectives into urban development and to provide information about participation.
Citizens' Council
The Aachen Citizens' Council meets two to three times a year to discuss an exciting urban topic proposed by their fellow citizens.
Question time for residents in the city council
The first hour of council meetings is generally reserved for questions from residents. Question time is also explicitly open to children and young people.