Permanent Assemblies
Reassembling Democracy
Imagine randomly selected citizens having a permanent seat at the decision-making table—a body that persists, rotates members, and increases citizens' voice in public institutions. As the current democratic model fragments, we are reassembling it into a more resilient system.
Cities and regions throughout Europe—such as East Belgium, Paris, Brussels, Copenhagen and Milan—have led the way in establishing Permanent Assemblies. Building new institutions takes time and continuous refinement. That’s why we’re working closely with early adopters to help this model flourish wherever it takes root.
Developing Permanence
Our work continues as more cities and regions take the leap toward permanence. Ready to design your own model?
Towards Permanent Climate Citizens’ Assemblies
Permanent assemblies are emerging as the next stage in the evolution of climate deliberation. Drawing on the first European pioneers, our joint briefing with KNOCA identifies how permanence can address the limitations of one-off assemblies and embed continuous citizen voice into climate governance. This work laid the groundwork for the institutional conversations that followed.
DownloadFirst cross-city exchange on Permanent Assemblies
For the first time, delegations from permanent assemblies gathered to compare their approaches —how agendas are set, how follow-up is secured, and how these institutions interact with administrations.
The group gathered representatives from Copenhagen, Milan, Brussels, Paris, and Ostbelgien. They surfaced a shared message: while designs differ, every city benefits when knowledge circulates. This exchange marked the start of a European learning community shaping the future of permanent deliberative institutions.
Permanent Assemblies Workshop
We convened the pioneers with a broader circle of practitioners and administrations interested in exploring permanent models. In this two-day deep dive, early adopters shared their learnings and recommendations, while several cities and administrations from across Europe shared their own progress.
Presentations from Dr. Nabila Abbas, Graham Smith, and Nicole De Palmenaer highlighted the diversity of existing models—from Paris and Brussels to the full Ostbelgien architecture—and the principles that make permanence work: structured rotation, institutional integration, and consistent follow-up.
Permanent Assemblies in Belgium
On October 14, 2025, we gathered leading practitioners and researchers at the Brussels Parliament for a landmark discussion on permanent citizens’ assemblies — a frontier where Belgium has become a global pioneer.
Representatives from the Ostbelgien Model, the Brussels Parliament’s Deliberative Committees, and the Brussels Climate Assembly came together for the first time to exchange lessons on what it takes to move from one-off experiments to enduring democratic institutions.
Moderated by Dr. Nabila Abbas (FIDE – Europe), with contributions from Ben Eersels (G1000) and Marjan Ehsassi (FIDE – North America), the conversation explored how permanence can deepen citizen participation, strengthen democratic learning, and shape the future of governance.