What is a citizens’ assembly and why is Wellington City Council holding one?

Citizens’ Assemblies are a form of deliberative democracy. They focus on collaborative decision-making by bringing a diverse and representative group together, to deliberate and make an informed decision on a complex topic where there is strong public interest.

The focus is not on finding a perfect solution, but a decision that everyone in the group can compromise on, in which the trade-offs are understood and weighed up. More information is on the University of Auckland’s Koi Tui: The Centre for Informed Futures Complex Conversations website.

This is Wellington City Council’s first citizens’ assembly. The project will be evaluated as part of broader efforts to improve Council engagement processes, participation rates and accessibility.

• In recent years, Citizens’ Assemblies have gained traction overseas. A prominent example is the 2016 Irish Citizens’ Assembly whose recommendations led to the 2018 referendum on abortion.
• They are increasingly used by state and local government authorities in Australia. Melbourne, for example, has a goal to be “A deliberative city: A world leader in using participatory democratic approaches to decision-making”.
• In Aotearoa, a key recommendation of the recent Review into the Future for Local Government was “Local government and councils develop and invest in democratic innovations, including participatory and deliberative democracy processes”.
• In Auckland in 2022, Watercare and the University of Auckland held a citizens’ assembly about the long-term future of Auckland’s water supply. Information about that project is on Watercare’s website. The Review into the Future for Local Government stated that “Overall, the project indicated that deliberative democracy has great potential for advancing public participation and good decision-making in Aotearoa New Zealand".