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 »
The last three years at Healthy Democracy have been a triumph in collaboration. The art of practicing democracy in every decision, every interaction, every transition takes a dedication to and perseverance in our values that is truly special. Three years ago, HD transitioned from a traditional staff structure to a non-hierarchical staff structure. With the
“Lottery-selected democracy is no panacea, but it is an example of a complex design that directly counters many of the threats facing our democracy today. It guarantees representation of many identities rather than relying on those who have the time, confidence, and resources to show up. It fosters collaboration more concretely than one-directional community engagement.
Hot off the Press! Read More »
Program Director Application deadline extended to: 11:59PM PDT on April 30, 2024 HD’s Program Directors manage our program development and implementation – and conduct ongoing outreach to cultivate new programs. Who We Are We bring together everyday people, from all walks of life, to tackle our most contentious issues. We are an Oregon-based nonpartisan nonprofit
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 »
Since you haven’t heard from us much lately, we thought we’d share a glimpse of what’s inspiring and delighting us behind the scenes at HD. (Against the backdrop of a long winter in Oregon, we could all use some inspiration!). Between major projects, our amazing little team is still working towards our mission every single
Behind the Scenes at HD Read More »
Mayors, city councilors, select board members, city and town managers, county executives, and other local government officials from across the country convened in this online conference in December 2022 to discuss how America’s hometowns can help reinvent democracy. Watch Alex, from Healthy Democracy, at the virtual Symposium hosted by the American Academy of Arts &
Reinventing Democracy: How Hometowns Are Strengthening America Read More »
This introduction to citizens’ assemblies and how they can empower breakthroughs in local democracy was co-hosted by the Berggruen Institute, Healthy Democracy, The American Public Trust, Hannah Arendt Center at Bard College, Abundant Housing LA, and Public Access Democracy. This 90-minute online teach-in brought together advocates and experts on democratic theory and governance to introduce
How can we include everyday people in political decisions? Duncan welcomes Alex Renirie, Linn Davis and Kacey Bull from Healthy Democracy to the show to discuss democratic lotteries that empower citizens to participate in the political process with informed deliberative consideration of complex issues. In this episode, you can see how they’re making sure your voice matters.
Creating a Healthy Democracy For Everyone – Omni Win Podcast Read More »
In this webinar, held on November 18th, 2021, Healthy Democracy teamed up with experts from across the world to discuss lottery-selected deliberative panels. Democratic lotteries are being used around the world to guarantee diversity, representation, and inclusion of new voices in public policymaking. Watch us to learn how this popular democratic reform could help Portland
Healthy Democracy is grieving the loss of Ned Crosby. Ned was not only a leading innovator in the field of citizen deliberation and public engagement, he was also a beloved mentor to many who have passed through HD’s offices. Ned passed peacefully on the evening of Sunday, May 29, 2022 surrounded by family in Minneapolis,
A Tribute to Ned Crosby Read More »
AMELIA PARREIRA ARGUS-COURIER STAFF March 2, 2022, 12:15PM To form the panel of 30 to 40 residents, potential candidates would be invited to participate through a mailed letter sent to 10,000 randomly selected residences. The letter would ask those residents to respond by filling out a questionnaire which would ask for demographic information such as
Here’s how the controversial new Petaluma fairgrounds planning process will work Read More »
A Citizens Assembly Could Unify People Around a Thorny Problem and Succeed Where Politicians Have Failed by JOE MATHEWS | FEBRUARY 22, 2022 The tool is called the citizens assembly.While getting elected to the legislature without a permanent address is nearly impossible, one democratic virtue of the citizens assembly is that it could specifically include a significant plurality of people who
Let the People of California Solve the State’s Homelessness Crisis Read More »
TYLER SILVY ARGUS-COURIER EDITOR February 9, 2022 Eager to find a solution to the quandary, Petaluma City Manager Peggy Flynn recently unveiled an entirely new approach that would utilize a novel “democratic lottery process,” the exact opposite of “politics as usual.” Healthy Democracy, a nonpartisan, nonprofit consulting firm with a solid track record of helping
By Susan Clark, originally published by Resilience.org Citizens’ Initiative Review (CIR) gives an old system a much-needed update. The initiative and referendum system, used in two dozen American states and many cities, allows voters to create public policy through ballot measures. In Oregon, leaders were concerned that this direct democracy process, while allowing voters substantial power, was missing
Democracy Rising 8: Deliberative Democracy — Power Read More »
Recording Reimagining Community Participation Through Democratic Lotteries Thursday, November 18th • 5:00-6:30pm (PST) Democratic lotteries are being used around the world to guarantee diversity, representation, and inclusion of new voices in public policymaking. Join us to learn how this popular democratic reform could help Portland reimagine civic participation to center everyday people – and hear
Guaranteeing Representation Read More »
Guest opinion article written by Sue Malek for the Missoulian: Should we enact Citizen Initiative Review Commissions (CIRCs)* in Montana? A bipartisan bill in the Oregon Legislature established CIRCs in 2008. Twenty-four citizens, randomly selected to serve, are paid salaries and expenses for participation in groups that study initiative issues and publish a statement describing
Opinion: Citizen Initiative Review Commissions Provide Deeper Involvement in Democracy 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,
From Facilitating Public Deliberation: Linn Davis leads Healthy Democracy’s program development and process design. He coordinates Healthy Democracy’s complex public processes, trains its facilitation teams, and consults on deliberative projects in the U.S. and abroad. In this episode, recorded prior to the pandemic’s impact, Linn explains the Citizens’ Initiative Review (CIR) and the skills needed for excellent facilitation
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 »
Democracy in Crisis is a special online series of global roundtable discussions about the use of randomly-selected citizen assemblies to further democracy. Democracy in Crisis is produced by Ahmed Teleb, Brian Standing, the 8 O’Clock Buzz and WORT-FM. Welcome to the second episode of “Democracy in Crisis” an in-depth series right here on WORT. In
Podcast // Democracy In Crisis Part 2: Mini-publics, Citizens’ Assemblies and Juries Read More »
