Technology for better public decisions

CDR is an independent technology and research organization focused on public policy. It works at the intersection of technology and public policy in emerging democracies, building open, privacy-first tools and capacity-building programs that make governance more transparent, participation more accessible, and decision-making more evidence-based.

What we build

Open, privacy-first technological tools & programs for transparent, participatory, and evidence-based public policy.

AI-powered policy intelligence for evidence-based action.

Empowers NGOs, public-interest teams, and businesses to track institutions and agendas, surface risk and opportunity signals, and turn complex public policy developments into decision-ready briefs.

Explore Policyful ↗
Policyful

Participatory civic engagement for parliamentary tracking.

'Tinder for Parliament' — people follow proposals through 5-minute summaries, vote on bills in a gamified way, turning complex legislative work into clear, engaging participation.

Try Referandom ↗
Referandom

Open, privacy-first AI for mission-driven work.

Helps civil society and decision-makers use AI ethically through workshops, open-source tech, and applied research — bridging the capacity gap with practical tooling.

Governance literacy and civic participation for young people.

A capacity-building program for university students aged 18–25, designed to strengthen governance literacy and youth participation. Delivered through multi-city, highly interactive workshops on political systems, elections, how parliament and local governments function, transparency, and youth representation.

RENEWIntel

AI-powered EU regulatory, risk, and decision intelligence for the energy sector.

RENEW-Intel helps NGOs, energy companies, SMEs, and researchers monitor EU energy regulations, policy developments, critical raw material and equipment dependencies, supply-chain risks, market signals, renewable energy, storage, and grid resilience trends. It turns fragmented and technical energy-transition data into structured monitoring topics, actionable insights, early warnings, and decision-support outputs for teams navigating Europe's green and digital energy transition.

RENEWIntel

CDRResearch

International research and cooperation on public policy, technology, and data.

Designs and implements research projects at the intersection of public policy, technology, data, and society. It works with international partners to analyse emerging policy challenges, conduct stakeholder and field research, test data-driven and technology-based approaches, and produce evidence-based policy recommendations, methodologies, strategies, and decision-support outputs for public-interest initiatives.

How we work

Three principles, applied across every product, partnership, and program we run.

Policy clarity, not policy commentary.

We translate complex public policy and institutional processes into clear, usable knowledge so teams can act with confidence.

Tools plus capacity.

We don't just ship software. We pair products with workshops, playbooks, and hands-on support so teams can adopt, adapt, and sustain the work.

Built for public benefit.

Our solutions prioritize public-interest use cases, are designed to be replicable across contexts, and are always free for public-interest teams.

Reports, briefs, and field notes

Open-access research and program outputs from CDR and its collaborators, published in Turkish and English.

Field notes, announcements, and analysis

Updates from CDR's programs, policy monitoring, and writing on the intersection of technology, democracy, and public policy. Posts are published in either English or Turkish.

Latest entriesAll posts

The people behind CDR

A multidisciplinary team working across technology, policy, research, communications, and program design.

AtaAtaHead of Product & Software Engineer
ElifElifCommunications Assistant
ElifnazElifnazSr. Projects & Communications Specialist
KadirKadirPresident
MesutMesutFinance & Administrative Consultant
NesibeNesibeAI Program Consultant
NevzatNevzatResearcher & Youth Program Consultant
OnurOnurLocal Democracy Program Consultant
PınarPınarManaging Coordinator
UmutUmutAI Program Coordinator & Software Engineer
YusufYusufVice President