I recently received a mail from a friend regarding a petition in Berlin for removing the law categorising dumbsterdiving as theft. I considered this an interesting petition. Especially, since I have participated in this act before and originate one of the european countries with the highest food waste ratio per capita.

Though the waste and in particular that of our food is important, I found the idea of online petition just as interesting. A quick research revealed that we also have this option for the European Union. In Denmark, the case is different. Denmark until recently had an online petition site, which have collected 2 million signatures over the last 7 years. If you estimate the Danish-speaking population at around 6 million people, that is a notably success. One could definately ask why is it being discontinued, while we should ask why is this not an everyday political tool in Denmark. Fare more interesting, why is it not an option for the European Union? Giving people the option to gather for a cause through a petition seems a valid way to get the will of the people heard.

More over, governments should lead in making democratic tools, but it is no secret that petitions have been used in companies for some time. Cooperatives are business entities that walk this path, many of the social media companies work in this way through their communities. Why are governments and politicians not demanding same frameworks for their jobs?