Gary Austin (circleindigo)

🚨 UK democracy is under threat.

🗣️ For 20 years, we have proven that public participation is the antidote.

🔍 Now, we need a CEO to lead our next chapter.

🤔 Ready to strengthen democracy? Read more and apply:
🔗 micro.green-park.co.uk/involve/

Publication - Ensuring Impact: New Guidelines for Effective Citizen Participation Published With “Ensuring Impact – A Guide to Effective Set-up and Follow-up of Citizen Participation”, the Bertelsmann Stiftung, together with the Federation for Innovation in Democracy Europe (FIDE), publishes...

How can participatory processes such as citizens' assemblies be designed effectively? The @bertelsmannst.bsky.social and @europe.fidemocracy.org have jointly published a comprehensive guide on this topic.

#CitizensAssembly

How Brazil is Widening Public Participation - Open Government Partnership

Gotta love it.🇪🇸 + 🇧🇷. Barcelona's city council manages a civic collaboration platform called Decidim, which Brazil has borrowed and deployed nation wide "Brazil Participativo" for civic consultation and participatory policy making. www.opengovpartnership.org/brazil-digit...

The Wheels Are Falling off the Nigel Farage Project The Reform leader's increasingly rattled public appearances betray a growing sense that the opportunity of a lifetime could be about to slip from his fingers

Farage hopes he can breeze into power without scrutiny. But his racism, corrupt donations, shady links to Russia and MAGA… make it harder for him to hide. And his tantrum reactions to being challenged reveal him for the nasty inadequate he really is.
#NeverPM

www.adambienkov.co.uk/p/the-wheels...

Children with SEND and their families have told us they don’t feel heard - we are determined to change that.

Democracy Is in Trouble. This Region Is Turning to Its People.

A small corner of Belgium is recruiting ordinary citizens to help create policies. Participants say it’s renewed their faith in government.

#CitizensAssembly

📢 Today's Public Participation Plan is a welcome recognition that we cannot reach Net Zero without the public.

🌍 By putting the public at the heart of decision-making, we can unlock the momentum needed to achieve Net Zero.

👀 Read more here👇
www.involve.org.uk/news-opinion...

🧵 Introducing the first of our 2026 workshops and the beginning of our brand new curriculum for community organisers.

You can sign up now!

All set for another pair of ToP #facilitation training courses, this month in Brussels - Group Facilitation Methods and Participatory Strategic Planning #ToPfacilitation

On World AIDS Day, I welcome the government’s HIV Action Plan to tackle stigma and end new transmissions in England by 2030.

We should ensure this promise is delivered by reaching the most marginalised communities.

We must also boost international funding to maintain global progress against AIDS.

Last week we launched “Simon Says, Let’s Talk”, a new men’s mental-health podcast series recorded live at Brimscombe Mill. (1/4)

🚨BOOM! The Petition calling for a public inquiry into Russian influence on UK politics & democracy has now rocketed past 80,000 signatures! Let’s get it to 100,000 this weekend. If a petition is what it’s going to take let’s get this done!

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/74...

People standing looking outward and at each other, with a snippet of a landscape and building in Maidstone.

We are working with Maidstone Borough Council to launch' Maidstone Together: A Community Discussion on ending Violence against Women and Girls (VAWG).' It’s a bold, community-led approach to designing safer streets, workplaces, and public and online spaces.

🧵👇

🤝 Collaborations between academia, policymakers and communities can transform local decisions — but how do we make them last?

💡 In a new piece for @ypip.bsky.social, Ciaran Cummins reflects on their recent ‘Not Another Toolkit’ event, exploring what helps these partnerships endure.

Read the blog 👇

Last call for Early-Bird registration!

Early-bird registration closes on 30 November 2025 or until our limited supply of discounted tickets sell out. Don’t wait!

Register here: www.iafamericasconference.org/earlybird

Democracy
How did we get there?
What is it for?
Is there another way?
Join us tomorrow.

Pope Leo's visit rekindles hope in war-battered Lebanon The upcoming visit of Pope Leo XIV to Lebanon has rekindled a glimmer of hope for many in the small, crisis-battered country.

The upcoming visit of Pope Leo XIV to Lebanon has rekindled a glimmer of hope for many in the small, crisis-battered country. https://to.pbs.org/4rm62Mi

🚨BOOM!! The Petition calling for a public inquiry into Russian influence on UK politics & democracy has now rocketed past 50,000 signatures! Let’s get it to 100,000. If a petition is what it’s going to take let’s get this done!

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/74...

Muslims in the UK continue to face hate crimes, fuelled by Islamophobic and anti-migrant rhetoric from far-right politicians and the media.

This Islamophobia Awareness Month, we stand in solidarity with our Muslim friends and neighbours. We must always challenge the normalisation of such hatred.

And now in Maidstone, a new project launching this week will create a space where residents can come together, share experiences, hear from experts, & develop recommendations that will shape Maidstone's strategy on violence against women and girls.

Keep an eye on our socials for recruitment calls.

Owning the space: on designing public dialogue on Violence Against Women and Girls in Belfast's public spaces Exploring violence against women and girls through participatory democracy, shared responsibility, and everyday action

📝 Our Head of Northern Ireland, @rebekahmccabe.bsky.social also wrote about what it took to design and hold space for these difficult, essential conversations 👇

rebekahmccabe.substack.com/p/owning-the...

🧵👇

In Belfast, we've worked with the Centre for Public Health at Queens' University Belfast on preventing VAWG in public spaces.

Find out more about this work here 👇 groundswelluk.org/Newsandevent...

🧵👇

For many women and girls, that feeling remains out of reach.

Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) is everyone's problem. The solutions should be everyone's work. That's why we're pleased to have been working with others to create safer public spaces through community-led dialogue and design.

🧵👇

🗓️ Today, on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, we're reminded that safety isn't just the absence of harm. It's the quiet confidence of walking home at night, of feeling seen and respected in public spaces, online, and knowing that home is a place of peace.

🧵👇

Petition: Call a public inquiry into Russian influence on UK politics & democracy We are concerned about reported efforts from Russia to influence democracy in the US, UK, Europe and elsewhere. We believe we must establish the depth and breadth of possible Russian influence campaig...

This petition calling for a public inquiry into Russian influence on UK politics & democracy already has over 30,000 signatures. Let’s get it to 100,000 this week.

Please sign and share 🙏

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/74...

Pope Leo XIV's visit rekindles hope in war- and crisis-battered Lebanon The upcoming visit of Pope Leo XIV to Lebanon has rekindled a glimmer of hope for many in the small, crisis-battered country.

To many Lebanese, it feels like divine intervention is the only solution for their country.

@chehayebk.bsky.social and I spoke to port blast survivors and Christians from the war-battered south about their hopes for Pope Leo XIV's upcoming visit to Lebanon

apnews.com/article/leba...

Petition: Call a public inquiry into Russian influence on UK politics & democracy We are concerned about reported efforts from Russia to influence democracy in the US, UK, Europe and elsewhere. We believe we must establish the depth and breadth of possible Russian influence campaig...

This petition for a public inquiry into Russian interference is now at 11.2k, and growing fast. We have to break through the establishment's wall of silence about Russian interference in British politics. Please share the petition as widely as possible.
petition.parliament.uk/petitions/74...

ShitFacilitatorsSay: a stock photo of a generic business meeting

A compilation of fine facilitation wisdom from the mysterious ShitFacilitatorsSay

www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/hu...

#facilitation #wisdom #ShitFacilitatorsSay #humor

ToP Group Facilitation Methods training - Brussels ToP Group Facilitation Methods training - Brussels

Last chance to register for my ICA:UK ToP #facilitation training next week in Brussels - Group Facilitation Methods, Tue/Wed 2-3 & Participatory Strategic Planning, Thu/Fri 4-5 - www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/top-group-... #ToPfacilitation

International IDEA champions dialogue and resilience at IPU-UNDP Conference

Interesting -- exploring the links between deliberation and democratic resilience. Great topic.

www.idea.int/news/interna...