In September 2013, the Foundation was appointed by the City of Sydney to conduct a Citizens Jury which mirrors the process underway for the South Australian Parliament through Premier Jay Weatherill. Importantly, the City of Sydney’s role is complemented by the commitment of Premier O’Farrell to table the results of the Jury’s deliberations into Parliament...Continue reading
In the media age, contemporary democracies are dominated by the spectacle of debating and divisiveness, especially at election time. Elections are now not much more than a series of competing sound-bites, with voting just another polling event: a ‘low involvement product’. We’ve groomed charismatic and articulate political performers, whose primary skill is to debate, divide...Continue reading
Author: A Draft Policy Paper from The newDemocracy Foundation Abstract: This paper has been produced in response to requests from a number of political parties leading in to the 2013 Federal Election. It outlines a practical, costed option as a clear, substantive step for those parties seeking to improve our democracy by posing the question of...Continue reading
In April 2013, the Foundation was appointed by the Department of Premier and Cabinet to conduct a Citizens Jury to complement other measures and policy responses linked to alcohol related violence. In all spheres of government, it can occur that good decisions don’t get made for fear of the political cost through a vox pop...Continue reading
Author: Assoc Prof. Lyn Carson, United States Study Centre, University of Sydney, 2009. Abstract: Jefferson’s fears about the uneducated dragging down democracy into service of base desires, and its corollary that education is essential to protect it, is challenged in this paper.
December 2008 Author: Daniel McFadden, Department of Economics, University of California, Berkeley Abstract: This paper explores an economist’s view of the rationale for using randomly selected juries of citizens for resource allocation projects such as major infrastructure decisions and tax policy. Full Research Paper
In December 2012, the Queensland Government announced a comprehensive review of the electoral process (attached below for ease of reference). The submission was made on March 1st and the Review is ongoing. The Foundation has made a submission referring to three major parts of the review: the chance to apply a candidate diversity rule to...Continue reading
Initial proposals for rebuilding the World Trade Center site had met with low levels of public approval, leading to the creation of a process with deep involvement spanning a range of people in the community. Given the multiple, valid competing claims for a say in the future use of the site, it was clear that...Continue reading
A project led by the Mayor of Recife has resulted in nearly 20% of the adult population being involved in some form in the 2009 budget process. In a 10 year period, over $300m in public expenditure has been redirected as a result. Open access forums on a range of government service areas discuss the...
Organised by Healthy Democracy Oregon, the Citizen Initiative Review is designed to allow the citizens of Oregon to evaluate statewide ballot measures. It follows a weight of worldwide research pointing to direct democratic methods (such as referendums in Australia) frequently being poorly understood by voters.