Can random citizens fix what party politics broke?
Description
In this final talk at Web Directions NEXT, I explore how we might breathe new life into democracy—by giving ordinary people a permanent seat at the table.The idea is to establish a House of Citizens—a standing assembly of everyday people, chosen by lottery, deliberating on the same laws and policies as parliament or congress. No formal power at first. Just visibility to the public who get to see another way to do democracy.That other way involves building a new institution in which the considered judgement of citizens can be forged and then express itself. Imagine, how might that shift previously vexed debates on guns in the US, carbon pricing in Australia, or Brexit in the UK?I also reflect on conversations with Google’s Vint Cerf about building better online platforms for cultivating good discussion. This is a fairly visual presentation with a video played, so if you want to see the action you can find the talk on YouTube.