What People Powered does

People Powered is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization incorporated in both the United States and Ireland, founded in 2020, that operates as a global hub for participatory democracy. It functions as a membership-based union connecting governments, civil society organizations, researchers, and advocates across five regions (Africa, Europe, Latin America & Caribbean, North America, and Asia). Its core products are services rather than software: Mentorship Programs, Training Programs, Accelerator Programs (including the Climate Democracy Accelerator and Rising Stars Mentorship), and the Democracy Stories Lab creative awards program. Supporting these is a knowledge platform comprising the Resource Center, Participation Playbook, Digital Participation Resources, and Research Data — most open content published under Creative Commons NonCommercial Share Alike licensing.

The organization's technology footprint is best characterized as a curated content and methodology platform rather than a software product. It has no public API, no SDK, no proprietary AI features, and references third-party open-source civic technology tools (Decidim, pol.is) rather than building its own. Day-to-day operations rely on standard payment processors (Stripe, PayPal) and standard web infrastructure.

People Powered's revenue model is donations and charitable contributions; it does not charge for its core services. Underlying revenue mechanics include individual donations (tax-deductible in the US), and likely foundation grants, though none are disclosed. Its go-to-market is community-led: it acquires and retains members through a global union model, providing mentorship, training, and accelerator programs. Distribution is direct via membership to organizations and government practitioners, supplemented by flagship convenings (Council of Europe World Forum for Democracy, Athens Democracy Forum, OIDP, ConsulCon, Global Forum on Modern Direct Democracy) and channels including its website, newsletter, social media (LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky). As of July 2026, Greta Ríos serves as sole Executive Director after Josh Lerner's departure as Co-Executive Director.

Name

People Powered

Legal name

People Powered

Website

https://peoplepowered.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

People Powered is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 2020 and global hub for participatory democracy, providing mentorship, training, accelerator programs, and a knowledge platform to governments, civil society organizations, researchers, and advocates across five continents.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Engagement and Participatory Democracy Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Capacity Building & Nonprofit Infrastructure Funders (BPAGAKAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM)

Keywords

• Participatory democracy
• Civic engagement programs
• Participatory budgeting
• Citizens' assemblies
• Democracy training

Headquarters

HQ city

Not specified

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: People Powered is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization incorporated in the United States and Ireland. Donations are tax-deductible in the United States. The organization mentions that members decide how donations are spent to address their greatest needs and priorities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

People Powered is a 501(c)(3) non-profit global hub for participatory democracy that supports governments, civil society organizations, researchers, and advocates through mentorship programs, training programs, accelerator programs (such as the Climate Democracy Accelerator and Rising Stars Mentorship), and a knowledge platform comprising the Resource Center, Participation Playbook, Digital Participation Resources, and Research Data. The organization does not sell a software product; it delivers capacity-building services and synthesized practical resources free of charge to its global member community, funded primarily through tax-deductible donations.

Product overview

People Powered is a non-profit organization serving as the Global Hub for Participatory Democracy. The organization operates as a platform of interconnected services rather than a unified software product. Its core offerings include: Mentorship Programs providing one-on-one guidance; Training Programs for capacity building; Accelerator Programs (including Climate Democracy Accelerator and Rising Stars Mentorship); and the Democracy Stories Lab (creative awards program). Supporting these programs is a comprehensive Knowledge Platform comprising the Resource Center (with guides, case studies, research papers), the Participation Playbook, Digital Participation Resources, and Research Data. The organization connects governments and civil society actors experimenting with participatory democracy approaches including Participatory Budgeting, Legislative Theater, Citizens' Assemblies, and Participatory Policymaking. People Powered is incorporated in the United States and Ireland, functioning as a 501(c)(3) non-profit.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mentorship Programs One-on-one guidance connecting governments and organizations with experienced practitioners to support the launch and improvement of participatory democracy programs.
• Training Programs Educational offerings designed to build capacity among practitioners and organizations implementing participatory democracy initiatives.
• Accelerator Programs Structured programs including the Climate Democracy Accelerator and Rising Stars Mentorship that help scale participatory democracy initiatives and support emerging leaders in the field.
• Democracy Stories Lab An open call for creators worldwide to share visual stories about the future of democracy, offering up to $1,000 in awards for compelling stories about voice, power, and collective decision-making.
• Resource Center A comprehensive content library synthesizing global knowledge into practical resources including guides, manuals, case studies, research papers, and sample materials for participatory democracy practitioners.
• Participation Playbook A collection of participatory tools and methodologies designed to help communities and decision-makers work collaboratively to design services, shift power, and rebuild trust in local democracy.
• Digital Participation Resources Resources covering digital tools and methodologies for enhancing civic engagement through technology, including online deliberation tools like Decidim and pol.is.
• Research Data Access to research findings, data, and analysis on participatory democracy practices and outcomes globally.

Quantifiable outcome

• 24 specific recommendations developed through Vilnius Citizens' Assembly on sustainable mobility
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Creative CommonscoreOthersPeople Powered follows Creative Commons licensing permissions for using and sharing work. Default license is Creative Commons NonCommercial Share Alike, allowing other parties to share or adapt material under specified attribution and non-commercial terms.
• DemocracyNextcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-publishing research papers on deliberative democracy including 'Deliberative democracy in Africa' and 'Scaling democratic innovations'. Collaborates on knowledge development for the participatory democracy field.
• Democracy Narratives AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-organization alliance working to shift global narratives around democracy, identifying 11 priority actions to build more support for democracy.
• CONSUL DEMOCRACY FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizes ConsulCon, annual gathering on digital democracy, open-source civic technology and democratic empowerment.
• International Observatory on Participatory Democracy (OIDP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners on the annual OIDP conference, returning for its 25th annual conference in 2026 in Kraków.
• DYPALL NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-publishing youth engagement resources including qualitative guidelines and case studies of youth engagement mechanisms.
• Federation for Innovation in Democracy (FIDE) North AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-publishing research on voice insecurity and barriers to inclusive recruitment in deliberative democracy.
• Shared FuturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-publishing guides on participatory budgeting in social housing and mainstreaming PB for service commissioning and investment in the UK.
• Council of EuropeflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners on the World Forum for Democracy 2026 in Strasbourg, featuring Democracy Innovation Award and Call for Initiatives.
• Democracy & Culture FoundationflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizers of the Athens Democracy Forum 2026, in association with The New York Times.
• Global Forum on Modern Direct DemocracycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartners on the annual Global Forum on Modern Direct Democracy, bringing together practitioners, civil society, researchers and policymakers.
• Global Democracy Coalition (GDC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-locates Global Forum with Athens Democracy Forum, bringing insights from regional dialogues across Africa, Americas, Asia and Europe.
• Bertelsmann StiftungcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-publishing travel expense claim forms and other practical resources for citizens' dialogue organizers.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights8 records

Regional players

• European Democracy Hub: European-focused platform advancing democratic innovation and citizen participation. Comparable in synthesizing global knowledge and convening practitioners, but primarily serves European policy and academic audiences.

Direct peers

• National Democratic Institute (NDI): US-based nonprofit supporting democratic governance and citizen participation worldwide. Closest peer in mission and global membership/government engagement model, though with a much larger budget and broader programmatic scope.
• International IDEA: Intergovernmental organization focused on democratic governance and electoral processes globally. Highly comparable in advancing participatory democracy methods and producing research and resources used by governments.
• International Centre for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL): Global nonprofit supporting civil society and civic space. Comparable in equipping organizations and governments with legal, policy, and capacity-building resources for participatory governance.
• International Republican Institute (IRI): Nonprofit working with partners worldwide to advance democracy. Similar global footprint and government practitioner focus, though with a partisan-affiliated mandate that contrasts with People Powered's non-partisan model.
• The Governance Lab (The GovLab): NYU-affiliated research and action lab focused on how technology and innovation can improve governance. Highly comparable in producing practical resources, research, and methodologies used by governments to enable citizen participation.
• DemocracyNext: Mission-driven organization building democratic infrastructure, with whom People Powered co-publishes research. Comparable in operating as a small, mission-driven hub for democratic innovation and practitioner resources.
• Healthy Democracy: Nonprofit specializing in deliberative democracy tools such as citizens' initiatives review. Closely comparable in operationalizing citizens' assemblies and other participatory methods with US-based state and local government partners.

Broad incumbents

• Bertelsmann Stiftung: Large German foundation running extensive democracy and governance programs. Comparable in publishing research and convenings on participatory budgeting and deliberative democracy, though operating as a much larger, broader philanthropic entity.
• Council of Europe: Intergovernmental organization with extensive democracy and human rights programming, including the World Forum for Democracy. Comparable in curating global best practices in participatory democracy and convening governments, though operating at supranational scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/PeoplePoweredHub
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/peoplepowered
• Instagraminstagram.com/peoplepowered_

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about People Powered