On September 21 at Concordia University, Healthy Democracy hosted the 3rd, and final, component of the 2019 Community Oregon program, the Community Oregon Expo. Community Oregon is a program of our organization designed in response to the need to increase understanding and communication among diverse segments of Oregon’s electorate. The final phase of the program […]
Learning. Livability. Leaning in. Read More »
On Saturday, September 14, at the C Bar C Ranch in Powell Butte, Oregon, Citizen University, Healthy Democracy, Oregon Humanities, and the Deliberative Democracy Consortium partnered to host Civic Saturday, a morning filled with civic reflection, connections, and inspiration. Wendy Willis, a Civic Seminarian through the Citizen University and the Executive Director of the Deliberative Democracy
Civic Saturday reflections . . . It’s magic y’all Read More »
A one-day exposition that will include all Community Oregon participants and special invitees. The brief and varied presentations will showcase what has been learned and to invite support for initiatives and projects that participants wish to develop or support as a result of their experience in the program.
2019 Community Oregon Expo Read More »
Join us in beautiful Central Oregon on Saturday, September 14 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., as we gather together to be in community with our fellow citizens, while reflecting on what our democracy means to us. The theme of this Civic Saturday is “Belonging & Homecoming”. Civic Saturday is designed to be a civic ritual — a
Civic Saturday – Powell Butte Read More »
UPDATE: The Milwaukie Citizens Jury Selection Event – Sept. 11, 6PM, at Milwaukie City Hall – will be live streamed on the internet, for anyone not able to attend in person. Simply visit the City of Milwaukie’s YouTube page here. An archived version of the live stream will appear on that same page following the
From swissinfo.ch: The municipality of Sion in southwestern Switzerland is planning a participative democracy experiment, first tried out in the US state of Oregon, that places randomly selected locals on a citizen panel in the lead up to national referendums. Various inhabitants of the canton Valais municipality will be asked to form a citizen panel that
Swiss town tests citizen panel to help voters analyse information Read More »
Monday, August 12 marked Farres Alkhaiyer’s first day with Healthy Democracy. Farres joins Healthy Democracy as a fellow in the 2019-2020 Community Solutions Program, a prestigious fellowship program run by the DC-based nonprofit IREX. This program brings together 80 of the brightest community leaders from around the world for four months of intensive leadership development in
Welcome to Farres Alkhaiyer . . . Dreams away from screams Read More »
The Milwaukie Citizens Jury on City Council Compensation will now take place Sat, Nov. 9 to Tues., Nov. 12, 2019. As detailed in a previous press release, we postponed the Citizens Jury to the fall due to a low response rate and a resulting lack of demographic diversity in our response pool. The inherent legitimacy
New Dates Announced: Milwaukie Citizens Jury on City Council Compensation Read More »
Due to a low response rate, Healthy Democracy and the City of Milwaukie have postponed the forthcoming Milwaukie Citizens Jury on Council Compensation – Oregon’s first-ever local government Citizens Jury. In the past few weeks, we did not receive a sufficient number of responses to form a citizen panel reflective of the general public. The
Milwaukie Citizens Jury Postponed to Fall 2019 Read More »
UPDATE: Due to a lower-than-typical response rate, we did not received sufficient replies to form a citizen panel fully reflective of the demographics of the Milwaukie public. Therefore, we have taken the unusual step of postponing the Citizens Jury to Fall 2019. More details on that decision (and new dates, when announced) may be found
Five thousand randomly selected Milwaukie households were mailed a letter this week, giving individuals in those households a chance to be part of a unique partnership between the City of Milwaukie and Healthy Democracy. Individuals who receive the mailing can be a part of the first ever Citizens Jury in the state, in Milwaukie. A
Citizens Jury is coming to Milwaukie, Oregon Read More »
John Frohnmayer was the keynote speaker at the Healthy Democracy 10th Anniversary Celebration on April 8, 2019. Enjoy his words of wisdom . . . and celebrate our 10 years and beyond! Nobody ever said that being a citizen in a democracy was easy. Each of us in this room tonight could give at least
Eight Suggestions for Democracy – John Frohnmayer’s Keynote Speech Read More »
From The Constitution Unit at University College London: The report, Doing Democracy Better: How Can Information and Discourse in Election and Referendum Campaigns in the UK Be Improved?, is a response to widespread dissatisfaction with the quality of political discourse and the information available to voters during recent election and referendum campaigns. The authors, Alan Renwick
New report: Doing Democracy Better Read More »
From Knowable Magazine: As hard as it may be to believe — especially in times of government shutdowns and partisan paralysis — people of different backgrounds and beliefs really can get together to discuss tricky issues and reach a consensus. Productive political discourse isn’t just a utopian fantasy. Recent history has shown that rigorous, thoughtful debate
A deliberate fix for democracy Read More »
Join us on Monday, April 8, 2019 at The Armory at Portland Center Stage for our 10th Anniversary Celebration!
10th Anniversary Celebration Read More »
From The Los Angeles Times: . . . By contrast, the review process for citizen ballot measures is woefully inadequate and sometimes leads to the passage of initiatives that don’t stand up to legal scrutiny. That’s what happened with Proposition 8, which outlawed same-sex marriage, and Proposition 187, which limited public services to immigrants who
From swissinfo.ch: In Switzerland, issues up for vote are typically complex and the interests of different parties are often difficult to decipher. One solution could be the use of a citizens’ jury whereby a few citizens are selected at random to provide a balanced assessment of voting issues for the many. The random selection of
Citizens’ Juries – providing a neutral recommendation on voting issues Read More »
From WGBH News: Across the state, in mailboxes, libraries and lobbies, there are stacks of Massachusetts voter guides. The red booklet from the Secretary of State’s office summarizes Massachusetts’ three ballot questions, with blurbs from the pro and con campaigns. Next election, there may be something new included in those packets. Lawmakers are considering legislation that
Lawmakers Consider Including ‘Citizens’ Statements’ In The State’s Voter Guide Read More »
From Fox & Hounds: Where was the media? The Citizens Initiative Review – the best proven way we have to evaluate ballot initiatives around the world – held a California pilot in Sacramento at the end of last month. And the state political media wasn’t there. What gives? Media folks like to point out the flaws
Smart Initiative Reform Took Place in Sacramento. So Where Was the Media? Read More »
Join us on Tuesday, November 6 at 6 p.m. at Oregon Public House for our second-ever trivia night, Drinks for Democracy: E Pluribus Brewnum . . . the Election Night Edition!
Drinks for Democracy . . . Election Night Edition! Read More »
Join us for to learn about the Measure 26-199 Citizens’ Statement, as information for voters by voters, as it is presented at various CIR Community Information Meetings throughout the Portland metro area.
2018 Portland Metro Area CIR Community Information Meetings Read More »
The 2018 Portland metro area Citizens’ Initiative Review (CIR) panel has released its final Citizens’ Statement on Measure 26-199, the Portland Metro Region Affordable Housing Bond. This was the first time that a randomly selected and demographically representative citizen panel has reviewed a local ballot measure in the Portland area. Over the past four days, from
Portland Metro-Area Citizen Panel Releases Statement on Measure 26-199 Read More »
The Portland metro area is hosting its first-ever Citizens’ Initiative Review (CIR), facilitated by Healthy Democracy, a nonpartisan, nonprofit based in Portland. Up for review: the Metro Region Affordable Housing Bond Measure. A cross-section of voters – who are randomly selected to match the demographics of the metro region in key areas such as political affiliation,
The 2018 Portland Metro Area CIR is Starting Today! (And Running Aug. 23-26) Read More »
The Portland metro area is hosting its first-ever Citizens’ Initiative Review (CIR), facilitated by Healthy Democracy, a nonpartisan, nonprofit based in Portland. Up for review: the Metro Region Affordable Housing Bond Measure. A cross-section of voters – who are randomly selected to match the demographics of the metro region in key areas such as political affiliation,
2018 Portland-Area CIR Details Read More »
PORTLAND, Ore. — Healthy Democracy, a nonprofit nonpartisan organization that pioneered the Citizens’ Initiative Review, will be holding a public event to randomly select a group of registered voters from Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington counties to serve on a review panel to examine the Metro Region Affordable Housing Bond Measure that voters will be asked to vote
Citizen Panel to be Selected to Review Metro Region Affordable Housing Bond Measure Read More »
