From November 30th to December 1st 2018

Wisdom Council, Dynamic Facilitation, World Café, Graphic Recording

This initiative is part of the joint “BioDisKo” project which focuses for instance on the future-oriented field of bio-based circular economy. The German Federal Government aims (among others) to achieve a sustainable, bio-based economy in order to replace fossil fuels and contribute to climate protection. In addition to developing recommendations for solutions and policies, such processes also contribute to developing the social will to implement sustainability-related policies.

This project was funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, and conducted by the Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities Essen (KWI). This initiative aims to change the current way of living and economic activity, and particularly contribute to the design of a sustainable bio-economy.

In NRW, the region of Münsterland was deemed most representative to conduct the study. Results were incorporated into the “Future Council Bioeconomy NRW 2030”.

The method can be sponsored by the State government or at a more local level. The process is based on deep conversations between participants; no decisions are being made.

This project was set up to engage citizens in drawing up recommendations on the “biologisation” of the economy in NRW, for sustainability and climate protection.

This chosen model addresses community issues in a brief and inexpensive participatory manner. Unlike alternative formats, it requires selected citizens, general public, experts and concerned political leaders to meet and dialogue in depth.

In addition to raising citizens’ sense of inclusion and eagerness to make impactful changes, it helps ensure transparency and oblige politicians to deal with the findings and wishes of the community (regardless of whether they subsequently choose to consider them or disregard them in their planning work).

The German Federal Government is at the initiative of the BioDisKo project (2018-2021), which this case is part of. The goal of this particular initiative - conducted by the Institute for Advance Study in the Humanities Essen (KWI) - was to obtain recommendations for the future design of a bio-based economy in NRW. The region of Münsterland was chosen as it has a particularly high cultivation rate of Grain and silo maize within NRW. The Wisdom Council method was used to learn from a representative cross-section of citizen groups what they think about current and alternative land use.

In addition to informing citizens at an early stage, benefiting from their experience and making them feel like they can participate in more technical political issues and help shape regulations; this approach creates new ideas and solutions that are condensed into recommendations for policy-makers.

- 369 citizens were randomly selected in Münsterland, with the aim to achieve the most representative cross-section of the population possible; citizens were invited in writing to participate

- The City Council happened over 2 days with 3 selected experts available to advise participants. Groups were organized in sitting circle and discussions were led by independent moderators who used the Dynamic Facilitation method. After experts had informed citizens of the opportunities and risks of bioecomy, short discussion rounds between participants followed.

- Findings were presented in a World Café for further and deeper group conversations. The objective is to listen to all voices and collect statements with the Graphic Recording technique and a research diary for participants. The end result is a brochure of policy recommendations, which are named and determined exclusively by the citizens. This provides informational groundwork for further conversation among community members and government.

- This brochure will then be presented to a wider public. Often with this approach, a responder team - team of relevant professionals at the institutional level - will also be involved to review the findings and monitors their implementation. In addition, feedback on the status of their recommendations is usually reported to council members.

TOOLS AND METHODS

Wisdom Council Process

It is a relatively simple and inexpensive participatory

process that directly engages citizens in dialogues about community issues, with the help of moderators using the Dynamic Facilitation method.

Dynamic Facilitation is a method for hosting deliberative dialogue in a way that creates psychological safety and thus encourages participants to engage creatively with differing perspectives.

World Café methodology Method for hosting conversations regarding relevant societal issues, with the ideal scenario being multiple conversations that build on each other so that the issue is considered in-depth.

Graphic Recording

This method aims to generate new insights and knowledge through the visual recording of oral statements in the form of comics, line drawings and short notes. It is used for documentation purposes, or to summarize and present information in a vivid way in order to promote collaboration and group processes.

RESULTS

The process creates new ideas that are condensed into recommendations for policy-makers. This format has the potential as a democratic innovation to complement and enrich representative democracy in a very meaningful way, as it succeeds in encouraging participants to work together to develop a new shared understanding of problems to then jointly develop creative solutions.

SUCCESFUL ASPECTS

1. Multi-stage process where initial conversations are explored again in deeper group discussions that enrich findings, and in which a dialogue is created between the community, experts and political leaders

2. Methodologies used create an atmosphere of trust among the participants, the shared process enables the development of creative solutions, and the ongoing documentation and reflection allows non-linear and visual forms of perspectives exchange

3. The format strengthens citizens’ ability to shape political configurations and gives them the opportunity to participate in political issues that are mostly discussed by experts. Participants are a diverse group of “normal” people who will certainly raise points relevant for many people in the community.

Indicators could include in-depth insights and knowledge gained in the issues and concerns raised, participatory democracy level, number of measure recommendations formulated

In addition, in the evaluation of the Vorarlberg Bürgerräte – method on which this case is based – commissioned in 2012, significant indicators were developed regarding the effects on individual participants as a result of their participation in these Councils. These included: political education and views, connectedness (sense of identity, sense of connection…), self-efficacy and social sense of powerlessness, inclusion.

Wisdom Council on Bio-based Economy: "Biobasierte Wirtschaft?! Welche Folgen hat das für meine Region?" https://participedia.net/case/7007

Brochure (in German):

KWI. 2018. Der Bürger*innenrat

Biobasierte Wirtschaft?! https://dialogbiooekonomie.de/wp-content/uploads/KWI_BioDisKo_Broschu%CC%88re_Buergerrat_final.pdf

BioDisKo - Bioeconomic Utilization Paths - Discourse & Communication https://www.kulturwissenschaften.de/en/projekt/biodisko/

Methods:

Wisdom Council Process https://participedia.net/method/5367

The World Café https://participedia.net/method/167

Dynamic Facilitation https://participedia.net/method/1692

The Vorarlberg Bürgerrat model, aka Citizens' Councils https://participedia.net/method/6227