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Deliberative Democracy and Climate Change: Exploring the Potential of Climate Assemblies in the Global South

29 October 2024

4:00pm - 7:00pm

Auditorium, RSSS Building at the Australian National University (ANU), ACT

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Climate Change and Democracy

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Climate change is the central policy challenge of our time. It directly threatens the well-being of people around the world as natural disasters, weather unpredictability, and ecosystem disruptions have increasing and compounding effects for human security. The citizens of Asia and the Pacific are particularly vulnerable to the harms of extreme weather events, rising sea levels, health risks, and climate migration.

Climate change also presents fundamental challenges to democracy, as effective policies are hindered by the difficulties of translating public concern into action, vested economic interests and short-termism. Yet, no country has crafted policies that fully respond to the severity and urgency of the climate crisis, despite increasing calls from citizens for meaningful action.

International IDEA’s new report on ‘Deliberative Democracy and Climate Change: Exploring the Potential of Climate Assemblies in the Global South’ demonstrates how citizens assemblies and other deliberative practices have the potential to improve climate policies and climate action.

On 29 October 2024, International IDEA and the Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance at the University of Canberra will organize a panel to discuss findings of the report, explore challenges and innovations of climate-related deliberative practices and the potential of climate assemblies in Asia and the Pacific.

Click here to register your in-person attendance.