We believe that young people should have a voice in shaping their future through participatory democracy. That is why we took part in a joint project, funded by Erasmus+, working with colleagues in Poland, Spain and Northern Ireland. The project created…
In our Annual Review of 2022, we recount some of our work in an extraordinary year. 2022 has been a year like no other. Economic, environmental and political turmoil defined the last 12 months. In our 2021 report we began…
We’re really excited to share the recommendations and report of the Blackburn with Darwen People’s Jury on Climate Change, on behalf of Blackburn with Darwen Council. The purpose of the People’s Jury was so that residents could have their say…
The recommendation of 99 ordinary citizens for the Irish Government is to hold a referendum, aimed towards making a binding constitutional amendment, to protect Biodiversity within the Republic of Ireland. Listen to the interview between Alex King, an independent journalist…
Our experiments in game-like facilitation shows play can make deliberative and participatory processes more effective and enjoyable. In the first of three blogs on creative deliberation and playful facilitation, we look at how it had a role in the Southwark…
Findings from a collaborative evaluation project on public engagement at COP26 Ahead of COP26, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (UK Branch) invited funding applications from organisations planning public engagement initiatives. They brought together six organisations to share knowledge, plan, create a…
Young people are highly aware of the threat to their futures from climate change yet are rarely able to influence the ‘gatekeepers’ of climate emissions – those decision makers in Cumbria whose strategies and plans can most affect our carbon…
Introduction The jury saw 25 local citizens consider the question, ‘What needs to change in Southwark to tackle the emergency of climate change fairly and effectively for people and nature?’ Southwark Council launched the recruitment process for its citizens’ climate…
The terrible news from Ukraine fills our newspapers and social media. It is worth mentioning alongside the tragic and unnecessary human cost is the threat to democratic innovation, including those such as Participatory Budgeting. Ukraine has had a burgeoning PB…
In these times of deepening democratic deficit, with trust in government at an all time low and social inequality spiralling, we believe it is more important than ever to place people at the centre of the big issues facing society…