66 randomly selected Norwegians will discuss how Norway’s wealth can be used to benefit both current and future generations. We Do Democracy is co-running the independent third-party secretariat for the Future Panel together with Norwegian SoCentral. We bring our experience from more than 20 Danish citizens’ assemblies and citizens’ consultations, build on our experience with SoCentral on the Norwegian Climate Citizens’ Consultation, and ensure that the Future Panel meets the OECD criteria and standards for deliberative processes
Norway is a rich country. In a world with serious challenges. The Future Panel is a national citizens’ parliament where 66 members will reflect the entire population of Norway – from north to south. The Citizens’ Parliament will meet seven times over four months to gain knowledge from experts, discuss relevant topics and finally make recommendations on what Norway should do with future oil, wealth and investments for the benefit of future generations. The final recommendations will be presented to policy makers and shared openly. On November 13, 40,000 citizens will receive an SMS invitation to participate in the Future Panel. Of the Norwegians who accept, a stratified draw will determine which 66 people will be included in the panel. Participants are selected based on five criteria: age, gender, place of residence, education and an attitude question. This ensures that the members of the panel reflect the diversity of Norway. The question that the Future Panel will answer has been asked by seven leading civil society organizations; Save the Children, Norwegian Church Aid, the National Council for Norwegian Children and Youth LNU, Caritas, WWF World Wildlife Fund, Langsikt – the think tank for long-term policy, and Future in Our Hands. Never before have so many organizations come together to ensure a national conversation on a national agenda using a citizens’ parliament, which is unique on a global scale.
- With the Future Panel, we want to start a national conversation about how Norway can contribute to a better future for both current and future generations in the face of common global challenges. We hope that politicians across party lines will listen to the recommendations from the panel,” says Eirik Mofoss, CEO of Langsikt – the think tank for long-term policy
A citizens’ parliament, initiated by civil society, is uniquely positioned to have one of the most difficult conversations in Norway: how Norwegian wealth should be spent. Citizens’ Councils are good at handling both the most important and the most difficult conversations. Even the conversations that politicians might not dare to have right now. The future of more citizens’ assemblies may lie in identifying these difficult and important topics and then getting ordinary citizens to discuss them and make recommendations to politicians. The project is funded by several national and international partners, including the European Climate Foundation, Sunrise Project, Ragnhild and Jens Ulltveit-Moe and Værkraft Fonden. The Futures Panel follows the OECD Principles for Public Participation and the process is designed to ensure broad legitimacy and a balanced, independent dialog. A secretariat, led by non-profit SoCentral, in collaboration with We Do Democracy, organizes the entire process, from recruiting participants to facilitating the meetings. They ensure that the citizens’ parliament has access to neutral and relevant information so that participants can make good and informed choices. They are also responsible for ensuring that the process is conducted independently and impartially, and that there is an arm’s length between the client and the participants in the panel. We Do Democracy has a special focus on ensuring that the process is in line with the best international examples and standards of what civic participation should look like.