The will to create an authentic, participatory democracy is encouraged by the trust that, as an active, involved and empowered people, we will decide to create the social and economic conditions needed to support our collective well-being and protect also the complex biodiversity of Earth.
Imagining what an enriching experience of democracy might look like connects us with our willingness to make it happen, and once we've awakened to the possibility of creating an enlivening form of democracy, the steps ahead become more clear.
If voting, as we do now, to elect politicians to make decisions on our behalf, is an unsatisfactory and superficial way to do democracy—one that leaves all but a few of us alienated from important decision-making, and perhaps unconsciously believing that we are powerless to create positive change—then what might politics look like if we were to be involved in a meaningful and empowering way?
Let's imagine our democracy transformed.
Our current electoral ridings—where various candidates contend in elections with the expectation of entering the oppositional world of partisan politics—are really communities waiting to be fully born through the shared realization of our common needs and values. As we share our place on the Earth in community, it is in our geographically situated communities where we might come together and transform the oppositional character of the political culture into one that is actually supporting, hopeful and sustainable.
It's in community where we could periodically explore our understanding of our shared needs and values, and this process could flow into an evolving, collective Constitution that expresses who we are and what we want as a people. At this time of exploring our common needs, a number of individuals could step forward with the intention of participating in local government. Although individuals are chosen by the community, they wouldn't represent that community, but rather they would work to allow people to participate fully in informed and considered decision-making.
So instead of our electing politicians to make decisions for us, we would choose people who we believe could best facilitate our involvement in decision-making, people whose role could be to explore the possibilities surrounding all aspects of the decisions that we might all participate in making.
But our participation would be voluntary, and various in its many ways. There could be opportunities for us to contribute to the development of policy and proposals for action, as well as frequent opportunities to indicate our choices of preference and priority. Meetings would occur at places of local government, and be accessible via the internet, and the entire process of government could be open to public observation and contribution. And what happens at the local level would inform what takes place at a greater, collective level.
From those we've selected to facilitate our local self-governance we could send one (or perhaps more) to participate at the next higher level of government, where the local process would be mirrored on the larger collective level. At this higher level, perhaps separate ministries or departments would form, emerging from the principle areas of mutual need, so that different people might pursue areas of greater personal interest: like health, environment, agriculture, industry, culture, etc. At the highest level of government, maybe we'd want to have a council of elected decision-makers, prepared to make decisions—based on our common values and needs, as expressed in the Constitution—in urgent and unusual circumstances.
Predominantly, our mutual desire to meet common needs would motivate our collective purpose in self-governance. Is there any other way that the will of the people could be more clearly manifest?
As empowered citizens, we can decide both the form and the content of the democracy we want to have, so that we may more easily create the world we want to have. But if we are to do politics in a way that fosters our collective well-being, I believe that it's important that democracy not be a game of winners and losers, but rather an inclusive process where everyone's contribution is valued and honoured.
It's my intention to leave this here as a simple sketch, because I'm very curious to know how you imagine democracy.
Through imagining, we deepen our will to create.
Through love,
John
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