Forms of deliberative democracy
How does face-to-face deliberation support decision-making
by helping participants find shared ground?
What are deliberative processes?
The hallmark of deliberative democracy are various formats of in-person processes developed, tested, used and improved upon since the 1990s. From planning cells and citizens’ juries that bring together no more than a dozen people, to large citizens’ assemblies with hundreds of participants, these diverse processes all share a commitment to the inclusion of diverse voices, usually through a two-step citizen lottery (sortition) process and provision of support in whatever way is needed to ensure deliberation is informed and equitable. They require good information and careful facilitation and must allow time and space for deliberation to support decision-making through finding shared ground.
Our approach and experience
In our work, the question or topic of deliberation, the expected output and its use, and the available resources (information, money, people) all determine design decisions made in collaboration with the initiators of deliberative processes – community organisations, local and central government and others.
Deliberative processes that aim to make a clear policy-related recommendations usually require significant in-person time. For example, the citizens’ assembly on the next source of water for Auckland took four full in person days over a two-month period, with some additional online sessions. Processes whose output was advisory are often shorter, with fewer in-person deliberation days and more online and asynchronous work.
The deliberative process in Tairāwhiti that engaged with the question of land use transition incorporated a field trip for participants to experience the scale of the problem but also to learn about possible solutions.
One constant in our design has been the use of sortition in recruitment, although the types of databases used have varied.
Our design builds on our own experience, collaboration with knowledge holders and technical experts across the University of Auckland as well as nationally and internationally. These collaborations have also provided us with access to a variety of experts and stakeholders who support learning/information.
Further information
For information on specific projects, please check the menu under Projects. For published reports and academic papers, check News and Publications.
Resources
Find out more about deliberative democracy and the
thinking behind the Complex Conversations project
Website links
NewDemocracy Foundation
Access an assortment of valuable resources at
newdemocracy.com.au
Involve UK
Putting people at the heart of decision-making
involve.org.uk
Podcasts
Real Democracy Now
A podcast about deliberation, culture and context
realdemocracynow.com.au
A radical proposal for true democracy
Hélène Landemore talks to Ezra Klein
podcasts.apple.com
Facilitating Public Deliberations
Podcast from NewDemocracy Foundation
newdemocracy.com.au
Articles and reports
Catching the deliberative waveFilm and interactive media
When Citizens Assemble