Building Narrative Power

Using data-driven research to engage people

New DemPulse Research: How Gen Z Practices Democracy Online

France
Germany
Italy
Poland
Spain
Transnational

New research from Comms Hub’s DemPulse 2026 series finds that Gen Z in Europe rarely uses the word “democracy” explicitly, yet they routinely enact democratic values in their online behavior — debating policy, mobilizing peers, holding institutions to account, and experimenting with collective decision-making in digital spaces. Analyzing social media posts across France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Spain, the study shows that conversations framed around identity, justice, opportunity, and accountability attract the most engagement, while formats that center personal stories, visual memes, and short-form video accelerate spread. The findings suggest that democratic practice among young Europeans is often linguistic and performative rather than technical: civic norms are embedded in the platforms and styles they prefer, meaning communicators and policymakers who want to engage Gen Z should match their language, formats, and emotional frames rather than rely on abstract appeals to “democracy.”

Who we are

Comms Hub builds the narrative power of civil society through research, ideation and CSO-led action to engage people. We produce actionable insights that translate research into practical communication strategies. We are based in Europe and work across topics and geographies.

Collaboration and ideation are at the core of our work. We partner with civil society organizations and communities to strengthen their narrative power and expand their reach.

As a network of organizations, Comms Hub delivers advanced digital research, opinion analysis, campaign support and grantmaking. Our mission is to empower civil society in their communication efforts to strengthen democracy and human rights.

Our vision

We envision a world where everyone can actively participate in constructive public dialogue, fostering diverse perspectives and free, equitable, and democratic societies.

Our RIA impact framework

Research-Ideation-Action drives sustainable narrative change. We also regrant to support CSOs’ evidence-based campaigns.

Research

Comms Hub’s research encompasses digital research and public opinion research.

Our digital research tracks and analyses online narratives to understand how democracy is being shaped—and challenged.

Our public opinion research utilizes polling, focus groups and other methods to understand the attitudes underlying public sentiment. From this we can understand segments within broader populations.

Ideation & Strategy

The ideation phase transforms our research insights into strategic action through briefing sessions with civil society. Our briefings unpack our digital and public opinion research, such as platform-specific trends, emerging narratives, and strategic opportunities for democratic discourse.

Through focused workshops, we enhance civil society’s ability to apply research to data-driven strategic communications.

CSO-led Action

Comms Hub supports civil society organizations (CSOs) in designing and implementing civic engagement campaigns—either individually or in collaboration with other CSOs. Our Action phase includes, setting clear campaign objectives, building a tailored monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) framework. We guide CSOs through iterative implementation and post-campaign evaluation to ensure continuous learning and impact.

Grantmaking

Our grantmaking supports civil society organizations that are dedicated to engaging people in democratic discourse. We can serve as a re-granting organization for dedicated programs for larger donors. If you would be interested in working with us as your re-granting organization, please reach out to christal.morehouse@comms-hub.org.

Meet the Team

  • Christal Morehouse

    Executive Director

  • Wanda Sanchez

    Global Digital Research Lead

Our Associated Consultants

  • Luis Espinosa

    Financial Consultant, ETL NEXUM

  • Miriam Mir

    Independent Consultant – EU and International Project Management Support

  • Matthew MacWilliams

    Global Public Opinion Strategist

  • Anvee Tara

    Communications and Campaign Lead

  • Annette Atieno

    Communications Lead for the Building Effective Communications to Engage Gen-Z Project

Meet the Board

  • Jee Kim

    President

  • Xavier Prats Monné

    Board Member

  • Maria Golovanevskaya

    Board Member