🎭 What is Democracy's Second Act?

A pragmatic provocation to the current democratic imaginary — the first act.

This predominant vision achieved an unprecedented redistribution of power and granted near-universal rights through voting and representation. But its sole reliance on these core elements creates fundamental ambivalence about democracy's greatest source of legitimacy: the public.

In the second act, we reclaim people's active role in democracy. In this building manual for democratic infrastructure, Peter MacLeod and Richard A. Johnson tell the stories of the people and movements behind the participatory and deliberative methods that can transform our civic agency.

They highlight the diversity and plasticity of this thing we call 'the public'. Electorates are not homogeneous sectors of society confronted with one another, but rather a complex collective with the capacity for self-transformation. It is this plasticity that makes democracy both promising and uncertain.

Registration for the launch of Democracy's Second Act

In their book, Peter MacLeod and Richard A. Johnson challenge the narrative of a passive, cynical citizen. They show that when given the right opportunities, citizens step up for their communities and are willing to put in the time and effort! Citing examples from their own work and cases in other countries, they show the massive amount of civic energy that remains untapped.

Peter MacLeod will be in Brussels for the public launch of the book at the Canadian Embassy. He is the founder of MASS LBP and a board member of FIDE – North America. For over two decades, he has designed major deliberative processes engaging thousands of Canadians and contributing to the global deliberative wave.

📍 57 Avenue des Arts, 1000 Brussels
🕓 March 18, doors open at 3:45 pm
✍️ Register by March 11: https://shorturl.at/KmrAa

Organized with Embassy of Canada to Belgium and Luxembourg and EGMONT - Royal Institute for International Relations.

⏩In challenging times, talking about good examples is not enough

We need clear standards and a firm political commitment to ensure that participation is taken seriously.

A key takeaway that surfaced repeatedly at the two-day meeting of European civil servants from the Network on Citizen Participation and Deliberation at the Conseil économique social et environnemental, CESE, France.

⚙️The workshop led by Kyle Redman examined the problem from the side of the network members. Participants shared narratives around successful deliberative processes that attracted political support and discussed where they face obstacles.

🗣️At the public part of the event, the panel of experts widened the debate by touching on experiences from institutional reform approaches to encouraging a culture of participation from a young age. Their examples from permanently embedded deliberative bodies showed how sustained participation can strengthen democratic practice and public trust in democracy.

Anyone needs a European Sleeper night train ticket from Brussels to Berlin for tomorrow Wednesday the 4th of February? I cannot take the train, I can't cancel the ticket but it's transferable.

#fosdem #teamnighttrain

📢Registration is open - Citizen Participation in troubled times: Ensuring Impact through Quality

🔗https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScgqJRLSFVmvu_gIFVcIAEtM7Vu6DiKaenfW98gGVf2bCnWiw/viewform

Effective participatory and deliberative processes lead to valuable recommendations, but the real challenge arises when those outcomes are put at risk by shifting political priorities, evolving institutions, or fading momentum. The way participatory processes are designed and followed up determines whether their impact endures or fades away.

Our panel discussion provides an insider's view of such processes, featuring insights from policymakers and experts. It will also highlight the newly released guidelines “Ensuring Impact: A Guide to Effective Set-up and Follow-up of Citizen Participation".

📍 Palais d’Iéna 9, Place d’Iéna, Paris
📅 19 February, 18:30–20:00

The registration deadline is February 15th.

A Ford employee in Michigan yelled “pedo protector” at Trump.

Trump gave him the middle finger and appeared to say “f*ck you”

The worker, named TJ Sabula, has now been suspended

Trump defended the murder of Renee Good by saying she was “disrespectful” to ICE agents.

There’s no freedom of speech in America anymore.

Unless you want to say “quiet piggy” to a reporter.

Or “f*cking b*tch” to a murder victim.

https://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/ford/2026/01/13/ford-worker-suspended-after-exchange-with-trump/88169275007/

#uspol #fascism #abolishice