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Citizens' Assemblies Master thesis in Sustainable Development 2020/40 Examensarbete i Hållbar utveckling Citizens’ Assemblies: a potential transformative method for addressing the wicked problem of climate change A case study of the 2016 Irish Citizens’ Assembly. Tomasz Forsberg ¨ DEPARTMENT OF EARTH SCIENCES INSTITUTIONEN FÖR GEOVETENSKAPER Master thesis in Sustainable Development 2020/40 Examensarbete i Hållbar utveckling Citizens’ Assemblies: a potential transformative method for addressing the wicked problem of climate change A case study of the 2016 Irish Citizens’ Assembly. Tomasz Forsberg Supervisor: Frans Lenglet Subject Reviewer: Lars Rudebeck Copyright © Tomasz Forsberg and the Department of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University Published at Department of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University (www.geo.uu.se), Uppsala, 2020 Content Abstract ................................................................................................................................................ IV Summary ................................................................................................................................................ V Abbreviations ....................................................................................................................................... VI 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Aim and research questions: ........................................................................................................... 2 1.2 Thesis outline .................................................................................................................................. 3 2. Theoretical and Conceptual background ......................................................................................... 4 2.1 Deliberative democracy .................................................................................................................. 4 2.1.1 Background on deliberative democracy .................................................................................. 4 2.2 Citizens’ Assemblies' ..................................................................................................................... 5 2.2.1 Salient characteristics of a citizen’s assembly ......................................................................... 5 2.3 Wicked problems ............................................................................................................................ 7 2.3.1 Addressing wicked problems .................................................................................................. 9 2.3.2 The partiality, plurality and provisionality of knowing ........................................................... 9 2.3.3 Creating reliable knowledge through deliberation and transdisciplinarity ............................ 10 2.3.4 Including both ‘Facts’ and values in the inquiry process and validation ............................... 11 2.4 Sustainable transFormation ........................................................................................................... 11 2.4.1 Three spheres of transFormation ............................................................................................ 12 2.4.2 The practical sphere ............................................................................................................... 13 2.4.3 The political sphere ............................................................................................................... 13 2.4.4 The personal sphere ............................................................................................................... 14 2.4.5 Combining the spheres .......................................................................................................... 14 2.5 Discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 15 3. Method ............................................................................................................................................... 16 3.1 Literature review procedure ......................................................................................................... 16 3.2 Qualitative content analysis .......................................................................................................... 18 3.2.1 Content analysis procedure .................................................................................................... 19 3.3 Case study: Irish Citizens’ Assembly ........................................................................................... 20 4. Results and discussion ...................................................................................................................... 22 4.1 Irish Citizens’ Assembly: Arrangement and process ................................................................... 22 4.1.1 Random sampling .................................................................................................................. 22 4.1.2 Learning ................................................................................................................................. 24 4.1.3 Consultation ........................................................................................................................... 26 4.1.4 Deliberation ........................................................................................................................... 27 4.2 Discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 28 4.3 ICA recommendations: sustainable transFormation ..................................................................... 29 4.3.1 Practical sphere ...................................................................................................................... 29 4.3.2 Political sphere ...................................................................................................................... 31 4.3.3 Personal sphere ...................................................................................................................... 32 4.4 Discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 32 5. Concluding remarks ......................................................................................................................... 34 6. Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................... 36 7. References ......................................................................................................................................... 37 Citizens’ Assemblies: a potential transformative method for addressing the wicked problems of climate change A case study of the Irish Citizens’ Assembly in 2016. TOMASZ FORSBERG Forsberg, T., 2020: Citizens’ Assemblies: a potential transFormative method For addressing the wicked problem oF climate change - A case study oF the Irish Citizens’ Assembly in 2016. Master thesis in Sustainable Development at Uppsala University, No. 2020/40, 43 pp, 30 ECTS/hp Abstract: The amount oF global greenhouse gas emissions needs to be signiFicantly reduced in order to reach the Paris agreement target of 1.5°C by 2050. Contemporary representative political systems have Failed so Far in adequately addressing the complex problem of climate change. This study looks at potential alternative or complementary decision-making and knowledge producing methods, more speciFically the deliberative democratic method of citizens’ assemblies. The three core concepts discussed in this thesis are citizens assemblies, wicked problems and sustainable transFormation. By critically discussing and combining these three concepts, this thesis sets out to analyze a specific Citizens’ Assembly, namely the one held in Ireland 2016-2018. The thesis analyzes both the Irish Citizens’ Assembly model proper and its recommendations. The model is analyzed through the theoretical lens oF wicked problems, in order to determine to what extent the salient characteristics of the Irish Citizens’ Assembly model address complexity. In addition, the theoretical concept of sustainable transformation is used to analyze the Assembly’s recommendations, in order to determine how strong or weak they are in relation to this theory. A directed content analysis was used to help categorize the recommendations. The result of the study shows that the Irish Citizens’ Assembly model exhibited positive aspects in relation to appropriately addressing complexity. The transdisciplinary approach to knowledge production and the deliberative aspect of the Assembly process enhanced the reliability of the knowledge produced. The Assembly’s recommendations are, however, concluded to be weak as seen From a sustainable transformation perspective. The limited amount of time given to the topic of climate change by the Irish Citizens’ Assembly as well as the narrow focus of the information provided to the Assembly members are important Factors in inFluencing this Finding. Additional research is needed on the link between citizens’ assemblies, wicked problems and sustainable transFormation. On the basis of the research presented in this thesis it is argued that the citizens assembly model might play a crucial part in how
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