We continue to make slow and steady progress toward a world-class bike park here in Fort Collins. On Tuesday, the Fort Collins City Council passed two ordinances that help the cause. We still have a long way to go, but this is progress. Read on. Ordinance No. 102, 2024, Appropriating Prior Year Reserves in the […]
Council Approves Bike Park Study & Civic Assembly Process Read More »
An Oregon county is looking for solutions to youth homelessness—so it convened a random selection of residents to come up with ideas. December 31, 2024 by Nick Romeo | ast July, an unusual letter arrived at Kathryn Kundmueller’s mobile home, in central Oregon. It invited her to enter a lottery that would select thirty residents of
What Could Citizens’ Assemblies Do for American Politics? Read More »
22 Aug 2024 At the City Council Regular Meeting on August 20, 2024, Fort Collins City Council approved, with a 3-2 vote, the use of a Civic Assembly process to help determine future plans for the former Hughes Stadium site. Click here to view the August 20 City Council meeting agenda, minutes and video.(External link) While
Council Approves New Engagement Tactic for Hughes Read More »
Rebecca Powell, Fort Collins Coloradoan | Published 5:01 a.m. MT July 23rd, 2024 | Updated 7:54 p.m. MT Aug. 20, 2024 UPDATE: Fort Collins City Council voted 3-2 on Tuesday, Aug. 20 to use a “civic assembly” process to help determine what the former Hughes Stadium land should be used for. Council member Kelly Ohlson and
By GEORGE ANDERS of The Chronicle of Philanthropy | Updated 2:00 PM PST, December 11, 2024 BEND, OREGON (AP) — Eliza Wilson is a little nervous as she draws the microphone close, but she is determined to share her life story. “My father was a disabled veteran,” she says. “I first experienced homelessness when I was
Can ordinary citizens solve our toughest problems? Read More »
An effort in Bend, Ore., backed by big funders looks for answers to youth homelessness. George Anders, October 3, 2024 — BEND, ORE.Eliza Wilson is a little nervous as she draws the microphone close to her, but she is determined to share her life story — and its larger lessons — with a vital new
Can Ordinary Citizens Solve Our Toughest Problems? Read More »
📺 Watch Deschutes County assembly members describe their experience in their own words As a contentious U.S. presidential election comes down to the wire, a group of citizens from across the political spectrum in Bend, Oregon demonstrated another way to do politics: through group deliberation, analysis, and moving moments of personal connection and excitement. “It’s
In Oregon assembly, Americans show another kind of politics is possible Read More »
Kelsey McGee, October 6, 2024 — BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — An innovative new way for Central Oregonians to weigh in on one of the region’s most pressing issues wrapped up its fifth and final day Sunday, preparing proposals for area officials to consider. The Civic Assembly on Youth Homelessness gave a representative sample of 30 Deschutes County
October 17, 2024 — From 14 September to 6 October 2024, a Civic Assembly on the topic of youth homelessness took place in Deschutes County in the US state of Oregon. On 6 October, Members of the Central Oregon Youth Action Board received the assembly’s recommendations. Later on, delegates from the assembly will deliver their
“Thanks for giving me hope” Read More »
July 30, 2024 — The Central Oregon Civic Action Project (COCAP), Healthy Democracy, and the Central Oregon Youth Action Board are excited to announce a Lottery-Selection event for Central Oregon’s first-ever Civic Assembly. The event will take place on August 1, 2024, at 6pm at the Deschutes Public Library. During this event, 30 delegates will
Selection Event for First Civic Assembly in Central Oregon Read More »
City Club Forum Floats Idea of Citizens Assembly to Tackle Topics in “Bend” Way Simon Mather, May 9, 2024 — A recent City Club of Central Oregon forum asked whether Citizens Assemblies — an idea which has been gaining significant traction worldwide — could be a fresh way for local residents to own complex issues
Move to Give Community “Seat at Table” Read More »
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The Central Oregon Civic Action Project and Central Oregon Youth Action Board have mailed 12,500 letters to randomly selected households in Deschutes County to participate in a Civic Assembly focused on solutions for youth homelessness. Here’s their announcement, in full: The Civic Assembly is a democratic innovation in which communities involve
La primera asamblea se enfocará en encontrar soluciones para los jóvenes sin hogar Julianna Lafollette | Translated Jéssica Sánchez-Millar, June 26, 2024 — El Ayuntamiento de Bend y la mesa de comisionados del condado de Deschutes aprobaron un Memorando de Entendimiento con el Proyecto de Acción civil del Centro de Oregón (COCAP por sus siglas
Asambleas ciudadanas locales comenzarán en el otoño Read More »
The first assembly will focus on finding potential solutions for youth homelessness JULIANNA LAFOLLETTE, JUNE 25, 2024 — The City of Bend and the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners approved a Memorandum of Understanding with the Central Oregon Civic Action Project, agreeing to receive and potentially implement recommendations that come out of citizen assemblies. In
Local Citizen Assemblies to Start in the Fall Read More »
12,750 invitation letters have been mailed to residents in our first project to institutionalise a Citizens’ Assembly in the US July 10, 2024 — Last week, with official support from city and county governments in Central Oregon, more than 12,750 letters were sent to residents inviting them to be in the lottery for a Civic Assembly on
Launching a first-of-its-kind Civic Assembly in Deschutes County, Oregon, USA 🇺🇸 Read More »
May 19, 2024 — When the Bend City Council agreed Wednesday to join an effort by the Central Oregon Civic Action Project to examine solutions to youth homelessness we had questions: Who is this group? Where is the money coming from? The effort will be like jury duty for setting government policy. It’s similar to something from
Editorial: Does Deschutes County need a do over on setting policy? Read More »
HEATHER ROBERTS BEND, OR — A concept to engage the public in government policy decisions rarely seen in the U.S. could be coming to our area. City Club of Central Oregon Executive Director Kim Gammond says Citizen Assemblies are more common in Europe, “It’s a way for people to actually impact policy decisions beyond the one or two
Citizen Assemblies Concept Proposed for Central OR Read More »
JORGE CASUSO “September 25, 2023 — The future of Santa Monica Airport should be hammered out — not by the usual community activists and civic volunteers — but by randomly selected “everyday people,” City officials told the City Council Monday. The information item from top Public Works officials proposes using a democratic lottery to “engage
Randomly Chosen Panel Should Guide Airport’s Future, Officials Say Read More »
EUGENE — A first-of-its-kind Review Panel has completed the first phase of a public engagement process designed to advise the City of Eugene on the implementation of HB 2001, as part of the City’s Middle Housing Code Change project. The 29-member Panel of everyday Eugene residents was selected through a lottery process that uses random,
After too many years working in the advertising industry as a Creative Director, one day I came to the liberating conclusion that I no longer wanted to sell people things they didn’t need. This reluctant admission was instantly followed by a life-changing question: what if I take the skills I have for selling people stuff
Assuming Democracy: Adam Says Hello Read More »
It has been my great privilege to have served the Healthy Democracy organization over the past 4 ½ years alongside some of the most dedicated staff and volunteer board members one could imagine. First and foremost, my thanks goes to each of them for making this work possible and impactful, and equally importantly, for making
“The Hope and Promise of Our Democracy”: Robin Says Goodbye Read More »
Over the summer, Healthy Democracy was grateful to welcome Annabelle LaRosa as our 2020 Nevins Fellow. The Nevins Fellowship, through the McCourtney Institute for Democracy at Penn State, provides students with the opportunity to complete internships at organizations that bring people together to solve common problems. From June through August, Annabelle lent her perspective and
Annabelle’s Reflection on her Nevins Fellowship with Healthy Democracy Read More »
For Immediate Release August 12, 2020 Media Contact: Robin Teater, Executive Director Ph: 503-841-6865; Email: robin@healthydemocracy.org WHAT: Oregon Citizen Assembly on COVID-19 Recovery Thirty-six diverse citizens from across Oregon will share results of seven weeks of discussion and deliberations on key questions relevant to the State’s COVID-19 economic recovery. WHEN: Thursday, Aug. 27, 6-6:30
First Virtual Oregon Citizen Assembly Shares COVID-19 Recovery Recommendations August 27 Read More »
For Immediate Release June 30, 2020 Media Contact: Robin Teater, Executive Director Ph: 503-381-1196; Email: robin@healthydemocracy.org PORTLAND, Ore. – June 30, 2020 – Oregonians from all walks of life will participate in the state’s first virtual Citizen Assembly to weigh in on what could be some of the state’s most important policy considerations in
Everyone is talking about online engagement these days. Yes, those are eight different links to eight different articles, all from one quick dive into social media this morning. There is so much being written, in fact – so many weeds to get into – that I hope we don’t lose sight of a bigger picture, of what is important in planning for online deliberation. With
Practical Values for Virtual Participation Read More »
