Sortition and Socialism Online Conference: Call for presenters

Posted on May 11, 2024 by richwbrown

Sortition and Socialism Online Conference

Call for Presenters

The International Network of Sortition Advocates (INSA) is proud to announce our first conference, ‘Sortition and Socialism’, on Saturday the 31st of August. The aim of the conference is to help develop the theory of sortitional-democratic models of plebeian power and socialism, and build closer connections between theorists of sortition and deliberative democracy and leftwing theoreticians and activists. We invite speakers from both scholarly and activist backgrounds to explore the role of appointment by random selection within struggles for liberation and proposed alternatives to capitalism.

Invited speaker: Camila Vergara (University of Essex)

Presenter Information

Conference Date & Time: Saturday 31st August 2024, 15:00-19:00 UTC

The deadline for applications is the 7th of July. Talks should be no longer than 25 minutes; there will be a 20-minute Q&A after each talk, and a panel discussion at the end of the day in which all speakers are invited to participate. Applicants should email an abstract of their proposed presentation, along with a short bio, to <facilitator@insa.site>.

INSA is a volunteer organisation aimed at connecting pro-sortition academics, advocates, and activists around the world, to share resources and tactics and advance the theoretical understanding of sortition. As a functionally-defined network, we are multi-partisan, acting as a clearing house for sortition advocates of many different political stripes, conditionally brought together by our common interest in advancing sortition in theory and practice.

If you are a supporter of the use of sortition in politics or other realms, or interested in learning more about what sortition has to offer, you are invited to join our Discord server at <https://discord.gg/6sgnrphp6w>.

Filed under: Academia, Action, meeting, Sortition | 3 Comments »

Online meeting: Scheming for Democracy

Posted on March 22, 2024 by richwbrown

Scheming for Democracy

Presented by Wayne Liebman, M.D., American activist, advocate, and strategist for democratic lotteries and deliberation based in California.

Our deliberative ecosystem has a linguistic blind spot. In thinking about lottery based democracy, we often leave strategy off the table. It’s actually the conversation that we should always be having: ABC–Always Be Calculating. What strategy to use depends on the goal, but whatever your goal, thinking strategically will ease the way.

Let’s talk about how!

Date: Wednesday, 27 March · (Thursday, 28 March in Australia)

Time: 18:00 – 19:00 UTC/GMT [19:00 Europe]

Google Meet link: https://meet.google.com/bct-xucx-gep

Or dial: ‪(DK) +45 70 71 41 04‬ PIN: ‪464 474 557‬# — More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/bct-xucx-gep?pin=1550818843600

Filed under: meeting, Organizing, Sortition | Leave a comment »

International Network of Sortition Advocates Presents

Posted on March 3, 2024 by richwbrown

Scheming for Democracy

Let’s talk about how!

Date:

Wednesday, 27 March · 18:00 – 19:00 UTC/GMT

Thursday, 28 March in Australia

Google Meet link: https://meet.google.com/bct-xucx-gep

Or dial: ‪(DK) +45 70 71 41 04‬ PIN: ‪464 474 557‬# — More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/bct-xucx-gep?pin=1550818843600

About the Speaker: Wayne Liebman, M.D. is an American activist, advocate, and strategist for democratic lotteries and deliberation based in California. In 2020, he founded Public Access Democracy (PAD) an advocacy group that aims to catalyze the formation of deliberative citizen groups chosen by lot. PAD provided the impetus for the 2022 City of Petaluma Fairgrounds Citizens’ Assembly. In addition, as a project of PAD in concert with the Berggruen Institute, Healthy Democracy, and other democratic organizations, he co-initiated the Public Democracy LA project with the goal of setting up a citizens’ assembly in Los Angeles by 2026.

This event is hosted by the International Network of Sortition Advocates (INSA), a network committed to championing sortition across the globe as a transformative approach to political decision-making.

Filed under: meeting, Organizing, Sortition | Leave a comment »

The Role of Sortition in Organizations

Posted on December 1, 2023 by richwbrown

Join us for an enlightening dive into an underexplored dimension of sortition — its role in organisations. This event is hosted by the International Network of Sortition Advocates (INSA), a network committed to championing sortition across the globe as a transformative approach to political decision-making.

The main topics that this event will explore are:

• How does sortition in organisations fit into the broader advocacy landscape?

• Learn from instances where sortition has been used within organisational setups.

• Understanding the narrative around sortition and how it can be better positioned within

organisations.

• Where and how can sortition be introduced effectively within an organisational context?

**Q&A discussion to follow the presentation

About the Speaker: We’re honoured to feature Ben Redhead as our main speaker. As an Associate at Sortition Foundation and Co-Founder of INSA, Ben brings to the table a rich tapestry of experience. His journey as a strategy consultant, facilitator, and project manager has afforded him a unique perspective on the transformative power of sortition. Recently, he launched his own organisation, SORTED, an initiative that aims to merge innovations in democracy and organisational development. Ben’s insights aren’t just limited to offline platforms; he passionately shares his expertise and observations through his blog, also named “SORTED”.

This is more than just an event. It’s an opportunity to explore, engage with, and be inspired by the tremendous potential sortition holds within organisations. We’re not just discussing change; we’re laying the foundation for it.

Event Details:

Date: Wednesday, December 13, 2023
Time: 6:00 PM GMT [19:00 Europe, 20:00 Israel, 1:00 PM in USA- EST, 5:00 AEDT (Thursday, 14th December for Australia)]
Location: Online – Registration on Eventbrite

Be a part of this transformative conversation and the global movement advocating for a better way to make decisions.

Reserve your spot now!

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International Network of Sortition Advocates

Posted on September 10, 2023 by richwbrown

INSA Online Summit

The State of Deliberative Democracy in the World

Sunday, September 24, 2023

– Monday, September 25th in Australia –

19:00 GMT, 20:00 Europe, 21:00 Israel, 14:00 EST (2:00 PM), 6:00 AEDT

JOIN US for an informal summit about the status of sortition events and activities in countries around the world. Western nations will be highlighted in this initial 1-hour summit.

Australia – Spain – Denmark – United Kingdom – Austria – France – USA

– INSA is actively recruiting members from non-Western nations for future presentations –

Attend the Summit on Discord

https://discord.com/invite/6sgnrphp6w

Filed under: meeting, Sortition | 2 Comments »

Doing Democracy Differently

Posted on March 29, 2023 by richwbrown

Doing Democracy Differently

Teaching About Deliberative Democracy

in the Secondary Classroom

On April 3rd at 6 PM EST, we are hosting a short online Zoom call for anyone interested in learning more about this upcoming course.

Register for the Zoom Call Here

Course Date: May 20-21

Course Location: Manhattan (Barnard’s Milstein Center for Learning)

*Tuition-Free Teachers Fellowship Available & 10-CTLE Training Course in NYC*

**Limited travel funds available**

Filed under: Academia, Deliberation, meeting | Leave a comment »

Seminar: CAs instead of elections?

Posted on March 11, 2023 by Owen Shaffer

Democracy Without Elections is sponsoring a seminar titled “Citizens’ Assemblies and Lottery Selection as the Democratic Alternative to Elections.” It will be led by Terry Bouricius who, along with David Schecter, developed the nested assemblies model that was the basis for their implementation in the Ostbelgien region of Belgium. Topics include:

Why elections don’t work
History of democratic lotteries (sortition)
Why replacing elections with lotteries does not work
Transition possibilities from elections to lotteries
Using lotteries in boards, co-ops, condo associations, etc.

In this 4 hour seminar, you can review what you know and deepen your knowledge. Invite other folks who may be interested!

It will be held on Saturday 8 April at 12:30pm Eastern, 9:30 am Pacific, 6:30 pm Central Europe. Sign up here in advance.

Filed under: Elections, meeting, Sortition | 4 Comments »

“A Random Group of People” editorial in Seattle and town hall on Citizens’ Assemblies

Posted on March 5, 2023 by Ahmed R. Teleb

the Stranger, perhaps Seattle’s most widely read newspaper, has recently published an editorial by Ansel Herz, a former Congressional staffer in DC, now serving as communications director for Democracy Next, recently founded by Claudia Chwalisz (of OECD & Parisian Citizens’ Assembly fame).

In fact, this is what “democracy” actually is. In the 5th century B.C., the Greeks of ancient Athens coined demokratia to describe their carefully designed lottery system, under which any citizen was able to serve in parliamentary, administrative, and judicial bodies. Demokratia is not politicians, elections, and parties; the Greeks would have abhorred those, as many ordinary people—perhaps even you—do to this day.

“Their greatest gift was their passion for democracy,” observed the Trinidadian writer C.L.R. James in his 1956 essay, “Every Cook Can Govern”. The Athenians believed that elections were undemocratic; Aristotle called them “oligarchic.” It’s common sense that when only a handful of people can hold power, corruption is likely.

The Greeks recognized that whoever runs for elected office in the first place usually projects a peculiar power-seeking personality type. Having spent a lot of time around candidates who’ve won and lost, let me tell you: the Greeks were right.

After introducing sortition, Herz mentioned America in One Room, the Irish Citizens’ Assembly, and Brussels’s recent introduction of its own permanent CA.

In 2019’s “America In One Room”, for example, Stanford researchers organized an assembly of 526 Americans to deliberate for a long weekend. The group did not combust from anger and tension, nor did the participants retreat to their bubbles and cling to their beliefs. They found common ground around issues of trade, wages, immigration, and more. Democrats reported a 13-point increase in positive feelings toward Republicans; Republicans felt 14 points more favorably toward Democrats. Ninety-five percent of participants said they “learned a lot about people very different from me,” and 98 percent said they found the experience “valuable.”
Continue reading →

Filed under: Athens, meeting, Participation, Proposals, Sortition, Theory | Tagged: citizens' assemblies, Claudia Chwalisz, Democracy Next, Press, random selection, Seattle, sortition | 10 Comments »

Promoting Citizens’ Assemblies

Posted on January 8, 2023 by Owen Shaffer

Democracy Without Elections and Healthy Democracy have teamed up to provide a new seminar titled “Building Political Will for Lottery-Selected Panels in Your Community – A How-To Guide.”

The seminar will be led by Linn Davis on Zoom over two Saturdays: 11 and 25 February. Click here to reserve your spot.

Filed under: Academia, meeting, Sortition | 3 Comments »

Meeting: Sunday, October 23, 2022 – International Network of Sortition Advocates

Posted on October 17, 2022 by richwbrown

The International Network of Sortition Advocates will have our next meeting on, Sunday, October 23, 2022, at 19:00 GMT (London) [20:00 Europe, 21:00 Israel, 14:00 EST (2:00 PM), 6:00 AED].

The meeting will be held on our Discord platform. You must register on the app to attend the meeting. Here is your Discord invitation: https://discord.gg/6sgnrphp6w.

Once you have completed registration, to join the meeting:

Navigate to the heading “Talekanaler” on the left side of your screen (it’s before the “Linguistic Regions”)
Click on: “🔊General”
Click on: “Video

*Please note our desire to keep the meetings to a maximum of 1-hour in length.