Democracy

the essential work of creating systems that genuinely work for everyone requires us to redistribute resources and grant power to those who have been denied it—something that deliberation can help to achieve alongside other political organizing. Deliberation alone will not create a more equal society, and the outcomes of such processes are absolutel... See more

They also facilitated regional enclave discussions (as described in the “Facilitation” section below) ahead of the deliberation to identify feasible policy strategies and co-design the questions that the deliberative poll would ask of the public.

RepresentationOne of the most crucial elements of a deliberative process is a deceptively simple question: Who’s in the room?

power asymmetries can affect two important stages of the deliberative process (recruitment and facilitation)

Even the way people give and receive arguments is coded by cultural norms; the default expectation of “rational” deliberation has been challenged by various scholars, who argue that those who regularly engage that way are often whiter, more educated, and more economically well off. As such, deliberative processes still often proceed along lines of ... See more

Strengthening democracy shouldn’t be a finger-wagging, eat-your-vegetables thing. It should be something joyful that invites you to co-create.

Eric Liu

Co-founder and CEO

Citizen University

We focus on culture because it’s upstream of structure and policy. Do you walk past someone who is hurting or ask them what is wrong? Do you try to understand someone who is different from you? Do you think life is zero-sum and it’s every person for themselves, or do you think we’re all in it together? Those are culture questions before they are po... See more

representation without redistribution – of power, resources or decision-making – is not justice

Democracy Needs Encounters