Objective: Build a movement that encourages European citizens and organizations to choose European digital services.

Primary Audience: General public, civil society organizations, educational institutions, and businesses open to value-based digital transition.

Resource Requirements: Communication and outreach expertise, community managers, educators, translators, and content creators.

Key Activities:

• Launching awareness campaigns that frame digital choices as value-driven decisions
• Promoting European values through storytelling, social media, and influencer collaboration
• Collaborating with existing efforts — especially the European Alternatives project — to promote and expand a comprehensive, up-to-date directory of European digital services
• Providing onboarding support, including tutorials, guides, and “switching toolkits”
• Engaging schools and universities to include digital sovereignty in digital literacy education
• Supporting grassroots and community-led spaces where users can exchange knowledge and experiences

Value Proposition: This pillar creates a cultural and emotional foundation for digital sovereignty. It fosters a sense of European digital identity and pride, helping people see the use of European services not as a burden, but as a meaningful and values-aligned choice. It also generates the public legitimacy necessary to support policy action and funding initiatives.

Rather than calling for abrupt rejection of non-European platforms, this approach encourages pragmatic, gradual adoption where suitable options exist — and strengthens the ecosystem by building engaged, informed communities ready to lead the transition.

Back to the main text of the Initiative: European Digital Autonomy Initiative