A Citizen Assembly is a group of people who are broadly representative of the whole community. Together they learn, collaborate and deliberate to find common ground and form collective recommendations for policy makers, decision makers and the community. These Assemblies are also called Citizens’ Juries, Panels, or Councils depending on their size and nationality.

In a Citizen Assembly, people are selected by lottery to come together and discuss, deliberate, and make recommendations on specific issues. Here is a step-by-step outline of the Citizen Assembly process:

1. Define the purpose and scope
Clearly identify the topic or issue the assembly will address. It should be a complex or contested issue requiring public input.
Set clear goals, outlining what decisions or recommendations are expected from the assembly.

2. Establish governance and oversight
Form a neutral, independent group responsible for overseeing the process.
Assemble a panel of experts or stakeholders to guide the assembly’s design and content.
Allocate resources for the assembly, including venues, materials, facilitation, and participant compensation.

3. Recruit and select participants
Use a lottery system to ensure a randomly selected group of citizens.
Ensure the selected group reflects the diversity of the community (e.g. gender, age, ethnicity, geography and socioeconomic status).
Send invitations to selected individuals and provide incentives (e.g., compensation, childcare, travel assistance) to encourage participation.

4. Design the process
Decide on the duration and frequency of the sessions (e.g. weekends over several months).
Develop a structured agenda, balancing education, discussion, and deliberation phases.
Hire skilled, neutral facilitators to guide discussions and ensure all voices are heard.

5. Educate participants
Provide participants with clear, accessible information about the topic, including various perspectives and data.
Invite subject matter experts to present evidence and answer participants’ questions.
Include views from stakeholders, advocacy groups, and those directly affected by the issue.

6. Facilitate deliberation
Use breakout groups to allow participants to explore issues in depth.
Bring the full assembly together for summaries and collective discussions.
Use techniques like voting, ranking, or consensus to narrow down recommendations.

7. Formulate recommendations
Participants collaboratively draft recommendations or solutions.
Use deliberative methods (e.g. polling) to finalize the group’s positions on proposals.
Ensure recommendations are clear, actionable and justified.

8. Report findings
Compile the recommendations and the rationale behind them in a comprehensive document.
Share the findings with the public, media, and policymakers in a transparent manner.

9. Implement and monitor
Ensure that decision-makers consider the recommendations seriously.
Provide updates to the assembly participants and the public on how the recommendations are being implemented.
Assess the assembly’s effectiveness, including participant satisfaction and influence on policy.

10. Reflect and improve
Conduct a post-assembly review with organizers, facilitators, and participants.
Identify what worked well and what could be improved for future assemblies.
Contribute findings to the growing body of knowledge on deliberative democracy.

Citizen Assemblies have been successfully used worldwide to address issues like climate change, constitutional reform and public health. Their strength lies in creating a platform for informed, inclusive and representative decision-making.