Local digital twins and participatory processes: discourses, representations and practices

Since the «deliberative turn» of the Nineties, the evolution of local participatory processes has also coincided with the integration of digital tools – first through e-participation tools, then through artificial intelligence systems – within these practices. Although these tools are intended to improve both local policymaking and participatory processes, some studies have also highlighted potential risks. This article contributes to the debate on the role of digital technologies in participatory processes by presenting the initial findings of research on Local digital twins (Ldt), a frontier technology for forecasting, simulating, visualizing and comparing the potential effects of multiple policy choices and participation outputs. Using an interpretive approach, we analyzed discursive artefacts describing the characteristics and uses of Ldt in participation produced within the «Ltd Ecosystems», consisting of producers, retailers, experts, and local governments. The artefacts were analysed using the coding technique and interpretative elements from référentiel theory to understand how the role of Ldt in participation is represented and to answer the questions: ‘What are the normative and cognitive representations of LDT in policy-making and local participation processes? What courses of action can be activated by these representations? Our findings reveal cognitive and normative convergence in actors’ discourses, reproducing institutionalized visions of participation in urban governance. They also identify the necessary conditions for the development of Ldt and highlight some enabling factors. However, understanding Ldt’s actual effects on participatory processes – above all whether they overcome, reinforce, or reproduce some of the limits of classical and digital participation – requires further research, the possible structure of which is outlined in the conclusions.