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Newsletter #11st December, 2003 :
(Citizens' Assembly)
MEMBERS ASSEMBLED
The Citizens’ Assembly has now reached 157 members, with one member – a male from the electoral district of Vancouver-Kingsway – to be selected on December 8th. These members were randomly selected from all regions of British Columbia – one man and one woman from each of the 79 electoral districts. As staff members travelled around the province for selection
meetings in October and November, we have been impressed with
British Columbians’ eagerness to serve their fellow
citizens through membership on the Assembly.
Meetings always ended on a bittersweet note: the excitement of
newly selected members contrasted with the evident disappointment
of those who were equally willing, but whose names were not
drawn.
To see who the members of the Assembly are, click
here. You’ll find their names, home communities and
a brief biography. (Photos will be added later.)
We think you’ll be impressed by how representative
members are of the diversity found in B.C. They range from 18 to
80, from students to retired senior managers, from orchardists to
loggers, from dentists to educators.
The chart below graphs the ages of Assembly members
against the ages of British Columbia’s population. As
you can see, the Assembly is pretty representative of British
Columbians when it comes to age distribution.
WEBSITE RELAUNCHED
If you haven’t visited our website recently,
you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the improvements
since we relaunched the site on November 24th. You’ll
find new content and improved functionality.
As members of the Assembly study various electoral systems in
January through March 2004, you can learn along with them by
accessing online the same documents they receive. (See
Learning
Resources
on the
website menu.)
You can also present your views for Assembly members to
consider:
Make a
Submission
.
In addition, you will see what other British Columbians think
about electoral reform. All submissions we receive will be listed
on the website accompanied by an abstract. Those submissions
provided to us in electronic form will also be posted in
full:
Click here.
For those who are really keen, background documents are
available. Check out
History of CA
. As
well, there are links to relevant websites and a list of suggested
readings:
Learning Resources
.
STAFF DEPLOYED
Assembly staff has been in place for several months now; the
last staff member was hired in September. You can get to know staff
members online. From the website menu, select
CA
Staff
.
In addition to managing the logistical complexities of selection
meetings, new member needs, and planning for the activities of
2004, staff members have been actively seeking opportunities to
spread the word about the Citizens’ Assembly.
BRITISH COLUMBIANS ENGAGED
We have been out speaking to community, professional and
educational groups and actively seeking media coverage. Requests
for presentations about the Citizens’ Assembly are also
coming from other centres in Canada. In the past three months
alone, news media in B.C. have carried over 220 stories and items
about the Assembly.
Even though Assembly members have not yet begun their work, we
have already received about 25 submissions – ranging in
length from a single paragraph to 20 pages.
A letter and information about bringing the
Citizens’ Assembly into classrooms has been sent to all
Grade 11 social studies teachers in the province as part of an
Elections BC educational package. This will go to
approximately 430 teachers.
Also, a section of our website is devoted to supporting the
interests and needs of the education community. This content will
grow as the Assembly gets underway. (Select
Educational
Resources
from the website menu.)
Public awareness is a top priority for the Assembly. If, in
December 2004, the Assembly recommends a change in our electoral
system, B.C. voters will be faced with a referendum question and
need to be sufficiently engaged to make an informed decision.
CONFERENCE PLANNED
The British Columbia Political Studies Association has
based the theme of its upcoming conference around the
Citizens’ Assembly initiative. The conference, entitled
Elections, Representation and Governance in the 21st
Century, will be held on April 30 and May 1 at Kwantlen
University College in Richmond. Assembly research staff members
have been invited to participate. www.sfu.ca/igs/agm.html
MEMBER HONOURED
We were saddened to hear of the death of one of our members. Max
Malthus was the fourth British Columbian selected to serve on the
Assembly. His name was drawn on October 14th in Fort St. John. He
passed away on November 6th after a brief illness. Max was 75. We
honour him for his willingness to serve his fellow British
Columbians by volunteering for membership on the Assembly.
PERFORMANCE EVALUATED
There will be two significant initiatives to monitor and
evaluate the Assembly.
The first is a program of regular assessments of how effectively
materials are prepared and presented to Assembly members, how well
discussion groups are lead, and how members’ support
services could be improved. This will be accomplished through
regular evaluations each time the Assembly meets.
The second research initiative will explore the very success of
the Assembly itself as a way of involving citizens in public policy
decision-making. This research project should provide us with
invaluable information for an assessment of how Citizens' Assembly
processes work. The Assembly research staff is doing this work in
partnership with an 'outside' expert, Professor André
Blais of the University of Montreal, one of Canada's leading
researchers on electoral systems and attitudes.
LEARNING PHASE PLANNED
The first weekend of meetings for Assembly members will be held
on January 10 and 11. They will discuss governance procedures and
lay the groundwork for their year of working together. Then they
will dive into the study of issues and concepts related to
electoral systems.
SPREAD THE WORD
Do you know of others who might like to follow the progress of
the Assembly by subscribing to this newsletter? They can do so
simply by going to
CA Newsletter
Unsubscribe
If you no long wish to receive this newsletter, you can have
your name removed from the distribution list by contacting us in
one of the following ways:
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