Deadline: 25 May 2025
The Council of Europe project “Strengthening multilevel governance and local democracy to support Ukraine’s recovery” invites representatives of local, regional, and national authorities to participate in the online training “Deliberative democracy and Citizens’ Assemblies: innovations for civic participation”.
Objective
- The objective of the training is to raise awareness among representatives of public authorities about deliberative democracy—its aims, benefits, and Сitizens’ Assemblies as one of its key tools that supports inclusive, transparent, and participatory decision-making at all levels.
Topics
- Principles and benefits of deliberative democracy, Council of Europe and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities standards.
- The role of Citizens’ Assemblies in strengthening democratic legitimacy.
- Case studies from Council of Europe member states.
- Lessons learned from Ukraine’s first citizens’ assemblies in Zviahel and Slavutych.
- The role of public authorities in acting on Citizens’ Assembly recommendations.
Benefits
- Increasing the legitimacy of political decisions.
- Developing potential solutions to contentious issues.
- Bringing citizens closer together, enhancing understanding, solidarity, and cooperation.
- Providing collective proposals and decisions after informed and in-depth discussions.
- Informing authorities about citizens’ views and experiences and understanding where there is public consensus on a problematic issue.
- Drawing broad attention to important community issues.
Eligibility Criteria
- Date of the training: 30 May 2025.
- Format: Online (Zoom), with simultaneous English–Ukrainian interpretation.
- Trainers: international experts in deliberative democracy from the Federation for Innovation in Democracy Europe (FIDE):
- Yves Dejaeghere
- Nabila Abbas
- Kyle Redman
For more information, visit Council of Europe.
