Reaching out to the wider society: Why the open social web needs to matter to more people – and how we can achieve that goal

<p>The German-European initiative Save Social proposes a 25 minutes session focused on broadening the involvement of society in the development and stewardship of the open social web. Despite immense progress in establishing open alternatives like Mastodon or Friendica, today's open social web has struggled to connect with and empower the wider public, often because structural support has concentrated on technical advancements rather than inclusive engagement and content diversity. A handful of global platform monopolies dominate – as we all know - public discourse and information, undermining democratic exchange and transparency. While open alternatives exist, their reach is limited without the structural, content, and educational investment needed to engage broader segments of society. Current alternatives have not always made participation intuitive or relevant for users from fields outside the technology sector, which limits their impact and hinders genuine diversity in dialogue and innovation. Therefore the future of the social web is not just a matter for developers, but for everyone—requiring regulatory support, media education, and the creation of citizen committees to define public-good requirements. The session will highlight specific, actionable pathways for different sectors to join the open web movement, making digital democracy a society-wide project rather than a niche initiative, e. g.: • Frame the strategy around a clear democratic and social purpose, not only technical openness. • Frame strategies around stories and lived experiences instead of only technical roadmaps. • Treat communities as Co-desginers, move from “getting feedback” to “sharing authorship.” • Assume most people are not protocol experts and design engagement accordingly. • Build bridges to sectors of society Save Social's proposal is for a session that inspires and equips participants to break silos and bring the open social web to everyone, ensuring it serves as a democratic, accessible, and resilient foundation for the digital society of the future. Save Social is a network of 120 individuals, being supported by more that 260.000 signatories from Germany, collectively covering journalism, the arts, unions, startup founders, established economic leaders, public institutions, and research. This cross-sector representation is unique and powerful, fostering collaboration and a user-centric approach to digital democracy.</p>