{"id":3493629,"date":"2022-11-04T10:32:18","date_gmt":"2022-11-04T10:32:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.resilience.org\/?p=3493629"},"modified":"2022-11-07T11:02:24","modified_gmt":"2022-11-07T11:02:24","slug":"democracy-rising-27-the-garden-of-democracy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.resilience.org\/stories\/2022-11-04\/democracy-rising-27-the-garden-of-democracy\/","title":{"rendered":"Democracy Rising 27: The Garden of Democracy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Democracy Rising <\/em><\/strong>is a <\/em>series of blog posts<\/em><\/a> on deliberative democracy: what it is, why it\u2019s powerful, why the time is right for it, how it works, and how to get it going in your community. The series originates in the United States but will discuss principles and draw upon examples from around the world. Views and opinions expressed in each post are those of the individual contributor(s) only.<\/em><\/p>\n

[W]e\u2019re either going to survive together or die together. This century\u2019s unfolding trauma could be exactly what we need to ensure we flourish together in the future, by obliging us to learn some collective wisdom and develop institutions, ways of governance, and technologies that promote opportunity, ensure fairness, and guarantee our security within the remaining fabric of life on Earth.<\/em>\u2014Thomas Homer-Dixon[1]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This is the final planned post in the Democracy Rising<\/a> series for Resilience. As noted at the top of each post, the series is about what deliberative democracy (DD) is, why it\u2019s powerful, why the time is right for it, how it works, and how to get it going in your community. Democracy Rising has barely scratched the surface of this vast body of knowledge and practice; it\u2019s not really a primer and is barely an introduction. But we have tried to give readers snapshots of these topics that I hope will encourage them to learn more. Here I want to recap the topics and then offer some parting thoughts on why I believe that deliberative democracy is essential to the building and maintenance of resilient communities and thus to the future wellbeing of humans and the planet.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s in the Posts<\/strong><\/p>\n

There is a rough logic behind the sequence of posts, from the general and theoretical to the practical, but due to some editorial hiccups certain posts appeared a bit out of turn. The posts are grouped thematically below. To read further, click on the individual links or go the Democracy Rising index pages<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The introductory post, DR1<\/a>, sketches the outlines of DD against the background of the current crisis of democracy and argues that fixing what\u2019s broken at the top will require fixing what\u2019s broken at the bottom as well. The key to that is engaging ordinary people much more closely in governance; DD is a proven method and process for doing that.<\/p>\n

DR2<\/a> is a pot-pourri of short general arguments in favor of DD. DR4<\/a> and DR5<\/a> discuss deliberation\u2019s power as an adaptive governance system that capitalizes on human evolutionary history, cognitive capacities, and social relations.<\/p>\n

DR3<\/a> and DR17<\/a> draw connections between DD and environmental sustainability. DR22<\/a> shows how deliberation grounded in our love for the places where we live helps inspire environmental knowledge and action alike.<\/p>\n

Three of the central pillars of deliberative democracy\u2014inclusion, deliberation itself, and power\u2014are explored in DR6<\/a>, DR7<\/a>, and DR8<\/a> respectively.<\/p>\n

DR9<\/a> and DR10<\/a> discuss the importance of group facilitation skills in successful deliberations and point readers to extensive resources for further learning and training. DR11<\/a> provides a catalog of existing methods for hosting and running deliberative events and advice on how to prepare for and conduct them.<\/p>\n

DR12<\/a>, DR13<\/a>, DR14<\/a>, DR15<\/a>, and DR16<\/a> constitute a five-part deep-ish dive into some of the common tasks and challenges\u2014and how to deal with them\u2014that deliberative events typically pose for organizers.<\/p>\n

DR18<\/a> discusses deliberation and its importance to democracy in light of court decisions that have stressed free expression rather than true free speech.<\/p>\n

DR19<\/a>, DR20<\/a>, DR21<\/a>, DR25<\/a>, and DR26<\/a> illustrate the use of deliberation in specific contexts, including\u2014crucially\u2014classrooms. Deliberation can be taught to and used by students as early as the fourth grade.<\/p>\n

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DR23<\/a> and DR24<\/a> describe two examples of ways deliberative methods have been deployed to help inform public policy at larger-than-local political scales.<\/p>\n

These 26 posts add up to roughly 50,000 words on deliberative democracy and how to tap its power, from some of the most experienced and knowledgeable practitioners in the field.<\/p>\n

Why Bother?<\/strong><\/p>\n