DemocracyNext has published an intriguing report, “More-than-humangovernance experiments in Europe: Trends, opportunities, and challenges". Authored by Claudia Chwalisz and Lucy Reid the report emerges from a short exploratory research project to learn who is conducting new governance experiments in Europe, begin to map the field, learn from best practices, and share these findings.
The report considers some of the challenges and opportunities in taking forward the inclusion of non-humans. It proposes five next steps:
1. Greater exploration of and conversation with Indigenous voices and wisdoms
2. Research into past practices, such as medieval animal trials and other practices that are little known today
3. An exploration of how AI advances are creating new opportunities for communicating more directly with the living world
4. An exploration of the principles or foundational frameworks that could be codified into governance practices that would shift the relationship between the human and more-than-human
5. Further spaces for conversation, exploration and sharing, including constructive conversations with critics or sceptics.
While the report is not primarily focused on citizens’ assemblies, we know from the KNOCA Workshop on Hearing Unheard Voices earlier this year that there is significant interest in this area amongst our community. It is clear that much of the work is at an early stage of development, but it is an exciting frontier for assemblies where we have much to learn from emerging experiments like those represented in the DemocracyNext report.
The report can be downloaded from the DemocracyNext website.
