ODI Fridays: How to meaningfully engage the public in complex decision making

Governments and publicly accountable bodies routinely make complex decisions that directly influence huge numbers of people – everything from future climate policy, transport planning and local budgets to pivoting an entire police force. But how do you meaningfully engage the public in decision making when there are numerous factors in play, complex constraints and different options for policy and service delivery? Asking the public: ‘Do you want us to spend more on roads or social care?’ is meaningless if you don’t have the context or expertise to respond. Delib has been directly addressing these challenges with online deliberation for years, as a way of breaking down some of the boundaries; increasing citizen participation in useful, well-informed processes. Ben’s talk will draw upon recent and historic projects to highlight the benefits, pitfalls and peculiarities involved. About the speaker Ben Fowkes is Commercial Director at Delib, a digital democracy company founded in 2001 that’s worked on everything from political satire to major policy crowdsourcing websites for the Whitehouse. He’s an experienced consultant that works with governments around the world, helping to design and implement digital platforms for public participation. Ben has delivered more talks than you’ve had hot dinners, and has strong opinions lightly held.