A unique consortium to build an open, sovereign, and collaborative European digital ecosystem

From the French Presidency of the EU to the European ambition for digital commons

Henri Verdier at the Wikicheese 2022, Brussels

In early 2022, under the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union, France entrusted Henri Verdier, Ambassador for Digital Affairs, with an ambitious mission: to imagine how Europe could better support and recognize digital commons. This reflection gave rise to the report “Digital commons: an essential lever for European sovereignty,” submitted in June 2022.

This seminal text makes a clear observation: free software, open protocols, collaborative platforms, shared data sets… these resources, which are essential to the proper functioning of digital technology, are often maintained by volunteer communities, but remain fragile due to a lack of institutional recognition and adequate funding. The report therefore recommends placing the commons at the heart of public policy, creating a European support desk, and above all, structuring a common governance system at the EU level.

From political impetus to the creation of EDIC Digital Commons

This political impetus led, after several years of consultation, to the decision to create a dedicated European consortium: the EDIC Digital Commons (European Digital Infrastructure Consortium). This project, officially launched in the fall of 2025, aims to build a European digital space based on commons, interoperability, and cooperation between states and communities.

What will the EDIC do ?The EDIC Digital Commons will act as a European legal framework enabling Member States to co-invest in shared, open, and interoperable digital infrastructures.It will cover strategic areas such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cloud computing, and geomatics, with a view to reducing the European Union's dependence on non-European suppliers.Thanks to this model, states will be able to work together to design, deploy, and manage digital resources with confidence—a way to strengthen Europe's technological sovereignty while supporting open-source alternatives and cooperation between the public, non-profit, and private sectors.

A state/community partnership at the center of the preparation process

The consortium was built in two stages.

In the initial preparatory phase, each interested country was represented by a “state/community” partnership, a novel format that reflected a simple conviction: you cannot build communities without involving those who bring them to life.

Wikimedia France is proud to have participated in this stage, alongside Henri Verdier’s teams, contributing its expertise and its voice as a representative of civil society and contributing communities. Drawing on our experience with wikimedia projects, we contributed to discussions on open governance, transparency, and the sustainability of digital commons. These exchanges laid the foundations for a model that recognizes the social, democratic, and technical value of these resources.

In a second phase, the project gained new momentum under the impetus of the Interministerial Digital Directorate (DINUM), and particularly its director, Stéphanie Schaer. Thanks to her coordination and the relaunch of European discussions, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy were able to finalize the establishment of the consortium and give shape to this collective ambition. The press release published on the DINUM website sums up this spirit well:

”The EDIC Digital Commons reflects a shared ambition: to build together the foundations of a strong, open and sustainable European digital landscape”.

Stéphanie Schaer, Interministerial Director for Digital Affairs (DINUM) in France

A collective project to bring to life

The creation of EDIC Digital Commons marks a major milestone for digital Europe. For Wikimedia France, it represents much more than an institutional success: it is the recognition of a model, that of the commons, as a pillar of European digital sovereignty. This approach emphasizes cooperation, transparency, and shared governance rather than technological dependence or market logic.

But a consortium only lives through those who make it exist. For the EDIC to fulfill its promise, it will be necessary, as in its genesis, to maintain constant dialogue between institutions and communities, to ensure that the field is listened to attentively, and to ensure that European policies remain connected to the realities of those who develop, translate, document, and maintain these commons.

Wikimedia France salutes the work of DINUM, Henri Verdier’s teams, and all the European partners who have contributed to this major advance. This project illustrates what we have always stood for: a European digital landscape based on free knowledge, cooperation, and trust. Digital commons must be cultivated, protected, and shared, and it is together, states and citizens, that we can make them grow.

Further reading

📘 Report: “Digital commons: an essential lever for European sovereignty” by Henri Verdier, Digital Ambassador — submitted in June 2022. Read the report at diplomatie.gouv.fr

📰 Press release : Launch of the EDIC Digital Commons Published by the Interministerial Digital Directorate (DINUM), October 2025. Read the press release at numerique.gouv.fr

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