Reclaiming Democracy Together Launch Attendance
An update of the Dem36 team's recent engagement activity
EVENTSENGAGEMENT REPORT
Reclaiming Democracy Together Launch Event
Conversation at the Crossroads is a Melbourne-based group which has operated for the past five years. It has run many in-person and online events, bringing together people from diverse backgrounds to consider, discuss and engage with some of the social, environmental and political challenges of our time (see: Conversation at the Crossroads).
Late last year the group decided to mount a seven year national project titled: Reclaiming Democracy. The project was launched at the Melbourne Town Hall on Saturday May 9, 2026 (the 125th anniversary of the opening of the Commonwealth Parliament) and ran from 1.30pm – 4.30pm. I was one of the 1200 people who attended.
It was a packed program which mainly comprised speakers: Professor John Keane, Professor Gillian Triggs, Professor Mark Rose, Dr Natalie Kyriacou, and Emeritus Professor Joe Camilleri each spoke and then all participated in a panel session; and Professor Wendy Brown gave an online presentation. There was also a half hour musical interlude presented by the Tarab ensemble accompanied by the Victorian Trade Union Choir.
Although it was a didactic format, the speakers were entertaining and thought provoking. It was clear from the audience reaction that there is an appetite for democratic reform, and many of the ideas presented resonated with our ‘Towards a Charter’ document.
On Monday morning, May 11, I met with Joe Camilleri, the Chair of Conversation at the Crossroads, to introduce Dem36, to find out more about the next steps for his project, and to explore possible connections. Joe was very interested in what we are doing and wants to pursue collaboration where that is mutually beneficial.
At the moment, his group is planning a three phase approach involving community consultations about urgent national and/or international challenges. It is clear that they want to take a deliberative democracy approach, and he also spent some time describing a possible direct democracy approach, to these community consultations.
The overarching goal of the Reclaiming Democracy project is to embed deliberative democracy into Australian civic life, and to establish a permanent civic engagement platform linked, where possible, to policy making. Joe was very interested in our advocacy for a new State Constitution, not least because he could see the potential to embed deliberative approaches into a new Constitution.
I have undertaken to keep in touch with the Reclaiming Democracy project and we will both look out for collaborative possibilities.
-Alan