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< Back The migrant voice in public policy deliberations: The health story in Australia and Canada Catherine Clutton, Australian National University Tue 7 April 2015 11:00am - 12:00pm Fishbowl, Building 24, University of Canberra Abstract If there is a criticism of deliberative democracy it is that those who are included in deliberations frequently represent the well-educated, articulate, generally male, dominant majority who can engage in rational debate. This effectively excludes citizens who are less articulate, who may prefer different styles of interaction, or who are otherwise subject to discrimination such as women and visible minorities. Many immigrants fit the profile of those who are generally excluded. My research project takes the policy maker’s perspective and focuses on the engagement of immigrants in the development of health-related public policy, comparing Australia and Canada at both the national and State/Territory/Provincial levels. Noting that both Australia and Canada have explicit national policies in favour of multiculturalism and citizen engagement, it is pertinent to review how public officials engage with citizens from increasingly culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. In this context critical multiculturalism provides an opportunity to examine the institutional structures in place that may exclude immigrants from participating in government deliberations. Equally, the norms of deliberative democracy provide a framework to enable the inclusion of immigrant voices. Together, the facilitating features of these frameworks should enable the inclusion of immigrant voices. Within these frameworks I ask whether and how paying greater attention to cultural competence can enhance public policy deliberations and thus policy outcomes. Today’s presentation will be illustrated with findings from my fieldwork to show how governments are addressing the objective of inclusion expressed in these frameworks. About the speaker Cathy Clutton is a PhD Candidate at the ANU Medical School, College of Medicine, Biology and Environment. Cathy has over thirty years’ experience of public administration with the Australian Government (1978-2012), almost all of which was in the federal health portfolio. The majority of this time was spent with the National Health and Medical Research Council. Her responsibilities have included developing and managing programs that provided support for community organisations, developing evidence-based clinical practice and public health guidelines and policy, and providing support for health and medical research in Australia, including the ethical conduct of research. A recurring theme in her work has been citizen engagement. Previous Next

< Back Albert Dzur Associate About Albert W. Dzur is a democratic theorist interested in citizen deliberation and power-sharing in criminal justice, education, and public administration. He is the co-editor of Democratic Theory and Mass Incarceration (Oxford, 2016).

< Back Belgium: The rise of institutionalized mini-publics Julien Vrydagh, Vrije Universiteit Brussel and UCLouvain Tue 28 January 2020 11:00am-12pm The Dryzek Room, Building 22, University of Canberra Abstract In less than a year, Belgium has witnessed a large and sudden rise of institutionalized mini-publics. After the Ostbelgien model, the Regional Parliament of Brussels has institutionalized Citizens’ deliberative commissions, while multiple municipalities of Brussels are launching neighbourhood councils and a political party got elected based on a single promise to organize citizens’ assemblies. Belgium seems to become a leading laboratory of deliberative democracy and citizen participation. This ‘revolution’ is nonetheless surprising, for Belgium was known to be a copy-book example of neo-corporatism, whereby citizens tended to be excluded from political decision-making. How can we explain this increase? Is it a revolution or an incremental change? What do these new institutionalized mini-publics entail? What are their promises and pitfalls? This informative seminar will try to answer these questions by discussing dimension of this rise. First, I present its genesis and background. Examining Belgian mini-publics from 2001 until 2018, it provides both a descriptive analysis of what preceded and a narrative accounting for this expansion. Second, it explains in detail the design and competencies of four specific institutionalized mini-publics : a brief remainder of the Ostbelgien model; the Brussels’ Deliberative Commission (composed by elected representatives and randomly selected citizens); the atypical Citizens’ Assemblies organized by the political party Agora the neighbourhood mini-publics (sometimes combined with participatory budgets), which are mushrooming in Brussels’ municipalities. About the speaker Julien Vrydagh is a PhD student and a teaching assistant at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and the UCLouvain. His PhD thesis investigates the conditions under which mini-publics influence public policy in Belgium. His other research interests include the link between the mini- and maxi-public, the integration of mini-publics in collaborative governance, and youth parliaments. Julien Vrydagh also provides the City of Brussels with advices on its randomly selected neighbourhood councils. Previous Next

Latest News - Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance < Back Call for Papers: Deliberative Democracy Summer School 2024 18 Apr 2023 APPLY HERE! Please submit the completed form to our research assistant, Hans Asenbaum at hans.asenbaum@canberra.edu.au by 30 June 2023. For questions, please contact the summer school convenor, Hans Asenbaum at hans.asenbaum@canberra.edu.au .

Latest News - Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance < Back Deliberative Democracy and Refugees: Ensuring they have a voice 9 Dec 2022 Our PhD student Mohammad Abdul-Hwas shares his passion to study and research refugee crisis with UC's UnCover . Mohammad's parents’ and grandparents’ lived experiences of the ongoing Palestinian refugee crisis, that has lasted the past 70 years, has created a deep empathy for refugees. Connecting with Syrian refugees in Jordan who have similar lived experience drove Mohammad to research deliberative democracy, with the ambition to improve the experience and agency for people caught in a refugee crisis. Following multiple visits to Jordan – where his extended family is from – between 2012 and 2018, Mohammad’s interest and studies would pivot toward an underlying passion for refugee governance. His visits took place shortly after the Syrian conflict escalated from the Arab Spring protests in 2011 – an event that displaced millions, many of whom have ended up in neighbouring countries. He reached out to universities around Australia, looking to secure his PhD candidature in the space, including UC, and started reaching out to possible supervisors for his project. He succeeded in finding a supervisor ─ Dr Nicole Curato, Professor of Political Sociology within the University’s Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance . “Connecting her areas of expertise – deliberative democracy and paying attention to vulnerable people in disaster contexts – gave me a foundation to approach my PhD project about the Syrian refugee crisis,” Mohammad says.

< Back James Bohman Associate About James Bohman's primary areas of research include political philosophy (deliberative and transnational democracy) and the philosophy of social science (rationality and normativity). He holds the Danforth I Chair in the Humanities and is Professor of Philosophy and Professor of International Studies.

Faculty Affiliates Jonathan Pickering Faculty Affiliate View Profile Jean-Paul Gagnon Faculty Affiliate View Profile

< Back Julien VryDagh Associate About Julien Vrydagh researches the policy impact of mini-publics in Belgium. He conducts case studies to trace the policy influence of mini-publics, and compares Belgian mini-publics with a fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis in order to understand the conditions under which they succeed or not in exerting an influence.

Industry Partners We work with government, international organisations, NGOs, and the creative industry to translate deliberative theory into practice. Democracy R&D Our Centre is proud to be part of Democracy R&D–a global consortium of advocates, scholars, and practitioners of deliberative democracy. Our Centre is represented by Nick Vlahos, Nardine Alnemrand and Nicole Curato in their activities. Connecting to Parliament A collaboration between Centre for Deliberative democracy and Global Governance and the Institute for Democratic Engagement and Accountability.

< Back Maija Setala Associate About Maija Setälä specializes in democratic theory, especially theories of deliberative democracy, democratic innovations, e.g. citizens’ initiatives and deliberative mini-publics, and political trust. She is a Professor in Political Science at the University of Turku.

< Back Mara Hernandez Associate About Mara Hernandez pioneered the design and facilitation of multi-stakeholder dialogue and consensus-based coalition building in Mexico, on issues of public policy such as environmental management, human rights and public security.

< Back Benjamin Lyons Associate About Ben Lyons' research focuses on the intersections of politics, science, and communication technology. He has published work examining the roles that group affiliations and media use play in distorting policy debates. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Utah.

< Back George Varughese Associate About George Varughese has expertise in international development and academia, thought leadership and facilitation in governance, specialising in political economy & conflict. His is known for his skills in strategic analysis & advice, fundraising, program design & delivery, and policy development & navigation.

< Back Darielle Talarico Associate About Darielle Talarico's work focuses on deliberative democracy theory, public participation theory, and subjectivity. Her experience spans deliberative and participatory democracy in action in relation to issues involving First Nation land claims, protected areas, forestry, mining, and energy development in northern and Arctic regions of Canada.

< Back George Vasilev Associate About George Vasilev's research explores the application of deliberative democracy in the fields of conflict resolution, multiculturalism and transnational activism. He also does work on Balkan politics and Europeanisation. He is author of the book Solidarity across Divides: Promoting the Moral Point of View (Edinburgh University Press, 2015).

< Back Elise Clark PhD student About Elise is a PhD student at the Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance at the University of Canberra. As a Social Work graduate, her research focusses on how perspectives from Social Work can be applied to the paradigm of deliberative democracy. Prior to commencing her honours studies, Elise worked as a research assistant for Griffith University at the School of Government and International Relations and the Griffith Centre for Social Cultural Research. Elise has previously worked in community mental health and with young people at risk of or experiencing homelessness. PhD supervisors Prof Selen Ercan (Primary Supervisor) Dr Adele Webb (Secondary Supervisor)

< Back Hans Asenbaum Associate Professor and Centre Director About Dr Hans Asenbaum is a Associate Professor and Centre Director at the Centre for Deliberative Democracy. His research interests include identity and inclusion in new participatory spaces, digital politics, and theories of deliberative, participatory and radical democracy. His work has been published in the American Political Science Review , New Media & Society , Communication Theory, Politics & Gender , the European Journal of Social Theory , and Political Studies. Hans is Co-convener of the Participatory and Deliberative Democracy Specialist Group of the Political Studies Association in the UK. After defending his thesis at the University of Westminster, he held a position as Research Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Sustainability Studies in Potsdam, Germany. He has been invited for research visits and public lectures in Germany, Brazil, and Australia and received several grants and scholarships. Key Publications Asenbaum, H. (2023). The Politics of Becoming: Anonymity and Democracy in the Digital Age . Oxford: Oxford University Press. Asenbaum, H., Chenault, R., Harris, C., Hassan, A., Hierro, C., Houldsworth, S., … II, T. J. W. (2023). A Democratic Theory of Life: Living Democracy with Black Lives Matter. Theoria , 70 (176), 1–33. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3167/th.2023.7017601 Asenbaum, H. (2022). Doing Democratic Theory Democratically. International Journal of Qualitative Methods , 21 , 1–12. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069221105072 Ercan, S., Asenbaum, H., Curato, N., & Mendonça, R. F. (Eds.). (2022). Research Methods in Deliberative Democracy . Oxford: Oxford University Press. Mendonça, R. F., Ercan, S. A., & Asenbaum, H. (2020). More than Words: A Multidimensional Approach to Deliberative Democracy. Political Studies , 0 (0), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/0032321720950561 Asenbaum, H. (2018). Anonymity and Democracy: Absence as Presence in the Public Sphere. American Political Science Review , 112 (3), 459–472. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003055418000163 Full list of publications available in GoogleSchola r .

< Back Eda Keremoglu-Waibler Associate About Eda Keremoglu-Waibler's PhD research looks at the role of inclusionary and deliberative institutions in nondemocratic regimes, examining their impact on policy, the provision of public goods and regime stability. She lectures on authoritarian regimes as well as (political) cultural studies and public opinion research in Stuttgart.

Working Paper Series The Centre for Deliberative Democracy working paper series makes preliminary findings of research on deliberative democracy publicly available in advance of publication in journals and books. The series aims to present new research that makes original, high-quality contributions to the theory and practice of deliberative democracy informed by recent literature in the field. The working paper series is edited by Simon Niemeyer. Contributions to the series are welcomed from staff members, associates and visitors of the Centre. To propose a paper for inclusion in the series, please contact: Simon Niemeyer Professor simon.niemeyer@canberra.edu.au 2024/1 Hans Asenbaum, Nicole Curato, Bonny Ibhawoh, Genevieve Fuji Johnson, Justin McCaul and Ricardo F. Mendonça "Can Deliberative Democracy be Decolonized? A Debate" 2023/2 Lucy Parry "Integrity Challenges in Deliberative Mini-Publics" 2023/1 Mathias Poulsen "Playful Democratic Assemblages" 2022/2 Marie-Isabel Theuwis & Rosa Kindt "Through the Looking Glass" 2022/1 Nick Vlahos "Democratic Restructuring and the Triaging Functions of an Urban Deliberative System". 2021/4 Simon Niemeyer, Francesco Veri, John S. Dryzek and Andre Bachtiger "How Deliberation Happens: Enabling and Activating Deliberative Reasoning". (Published in APSR) 2021/3 John Rountree and Nicole Curato "Citizens' Assemblies and the Public Sphere". 2021/2 Antonin Lacelle Webster "The Political Problem of Hope and its Deliberative Manifestation". 2021/1 Pierrick Chalaye "The Discursive Sources of Environmental Progress and its Limits: Biodiversity Politics in France". 2020/3 Kei Nishiyama, Wendy Russell and Pierrick Chalaye "The Interplay of Facilitative Technique and Design to Increase Inclusiveness." 2020/2 Parry, Lucy J. and Ercan, Selen A. "Using Participedia to study the impacts of mini-publics.” 2019/6 Christoph Niessen and Min Reuchamps "Designing a permanent deliberative citizens' assembly." 2019/5 David M. Farrell, Nicole Curato, John S. Dryzek, Brigitte Geißel, Kimmo Grönlund, Sofie Marien, Simon Niemeyer, Jean-Benoit Pilet, Alan Renwick, Jonathan Rose, Maija Setälä, and Jane Suiter. "Deliberative Mini-Publics: Core Design Features." 2019/4 Niemeyer, Simon. "Intersubjective Reasoning in Political Deliberation: A Theory and Method for Assessing Deliberative Transformation at Small and Large Scale." 2019/3 Pickering, Jonathan. "Deliberative Ecologies: Engaging Complexity Theory to Understand How Deliberative Systems Emerge and Change." 2019/2 Alver, Jane. "Developing a Regional Voice Through a Feminist Forum: The Case of the Pacific Feminist Forum." 2019/1 Curato, Nicole. "From Authoritarian Enclave to Deliberative Space: Governance Logics in Post-Disaster Reconstruction." (Published in Disasters) 2017/3 Asenbaum, Hans. "Revisiting E-Topia: Theoretical Approaches and Empirical Findings on Online Anonymity." 2017/2 Bhatia, Udit. "Cracking the Whip: The Deliberative Costs of Strict Party Discipline." (Published in CRISPP) 2017/1 Nishiyama, Kei. "Enabling Children's Deliberation Schools as a Mediating Space in Deliberative Systems." (Published in Journal of Youth Studies) 2016/2 Dryzek, John S. and Pickering, Jonathan. "Deliberation as a Catalyst for Reflexive Environmental Governance." (Published in Ecological Economics) 2016/1 Jennstål, Julia. "Deliberative Participation and Personality: The Effect of Traits, Situations and Motivation." 2015/1 Pickering, Jonathan. "Top-down proposals for sharing the global climate policy effort fairly: lost in translation in a bottom-up world?" (Published in Routledge) 2014/2 Curato, Nicole and Ong, Jonathan. "Inclusion as Deliberative Agency: The Selective Representation of Poor Women in Reproductive Health Debates." 2014/1 Jennstål, Julia and Simon Niemeyer. "The Deliberative Citizen: The Role of Personality and Context in Deliberative Behaviour." Load More Older Working Paper Series 2014/4 Smith, William. "Disrupting Deliberation: The Impact of Political Protest on Deliberative Systems.", University of Canberra, Canberra. Access > 2014/3 Parry, Lucy. "Q Study in Waiting.", University of Canberra, Canberra. (Published in British Politics) Access > 2013/1 Niemeyer, Simon, Andrea Felicetti & Olga Di Ruggero. "Provisional Report - Analysis of the Citizens’ Initiative Review.", The Australian National University, Canberra. Access > 2012/2 Batalha, Luisa, Simon Niemeyer, Nicole Curato, John Dryzek & John Gastil. "Group dynamics and deliberative processes: Cognitive and Affective aspects.", The Australian National University, Canberra. Access > 2012/1 Niemeyer, Simon. "Building the Foundations of Deliberative Democracy: The Deliberative Person.", The Australian National University, Canberra. Access > 2011/5 Stevenson, Hayley. "Democratising the Governance of Climate Technologies.", The Australian National University, Canberra. Access > 2011/4 Niemeyer, Simon, Kersty Hobson, Jacqui Russell, Imagen Ord-Evans, John Boswell & Elaine dos Santos. "Participant Recommendations and Report: Climate Change and the Public Sphere Project.", The Australian National University, Canberra. Access > 2011/3 Goodin, Robert. "Democratising International Law.", The Australian National University, Canberra. Access > 2011/2 Stephenson, Hayley and John Dryzek. "Democratising climate governance through discursive engagement.", The Australian National University, Canberra. Access > 2011/1 Stevenson, Hayley. "Representing "The Peoples"?.", The Australian National University, Canberra. Access > Load More

< Back Kei Nishiyama Associate and Former PhD Student About Kei Nishiyama studies deliberative democracy with a specific focus on the role of children and young people. Kei worked at the University of Canberra and the Australian National University and will join the Doshisha University, Japan, from April 2020.