Maarja-Leena Saar is an expert in open governance and democracy at the Estonian Cooperation Assembly (ECA) – a competence centre that supports the development of participatory democracy. She leads the development of the Estonian Citizen Initiative Portal (Rahvaalgatus.ee) and contributes to participatory democracy initiatives, including Estonia's Open Government Partnership action plans.
The Estonian Cooperation Assembly (ECA), founded in 2007 by the Estonian President, publishes the Estonian Human Development Report and develops policy recommendations and initiatives to address some of the identified issues including participatory democracy. After holding a one-time nationwide citizen assembly in 2013, ECA has systematically developed participatory democracy through running the Citizen Initiatives portal rahvaalgatus.ee, fostering a democratic culture in schools through the use of participatory budgeting, and developing the culture of dialogue on the local level.
