Civic Assemblies aren’t new. 

Even before modern democracies, communities around the world, including Indigenous societies, used inclusive consultation, consensus-building, and collective decision-making to govern themselves.

Around 500 BCE, a new tool emerged: the ancient Greeks began using lotteries to choose members of the public to make public decisions. They believed random selection was one of the best ways to prevent the elites and political factions from taking over.

That core idea–people chosen by lottery, weighing evidence and making judgments–is at the heart of what you’re doing in the Akron Civic Assembly on Housing.

In the 1970s, the lottery model was rediscovered and tested to create “Citizen Juries” to improve public decision-making. 

In 2004, the first modern “Citizens’ Assembly” was held in British Columbia.

Since then, more than a thousand assemblies have taken place around the world, in Ireland, France, across the U.S., and elsewhere, tackling real public problems.

Here’s what makes a Civic Assembly unique: 
Delegates aren’t elected. 
They’re selected through a democratic lottery, just like you were. 
This ensures the Assembly reflects the whole community, not just the loudest or best-funded voices. 

In politics today, decisions are shaped by elections, parties, and competition for power. In a Civic Assembly, people are brought together, given time and information, and asked to reason through a shared problem. 

Civic Assemblies strengthen our democracy by giving community members the time and structure to work through hard problems together before decisions are made. 

And now you get to be part of that work.