The Town Council of Tolosa continues to update on the progress made to implement the 14 recommendations made by the Citizens’ Assembly 

‘Emotional Health and Well-being’ was the public challenge that the Tolosa Citizens’ Assembly addressed, the first process of citizen deliberation in the municipality that has significantly involved citizens in public decision-making. It was on 17 December 2022 that the members of the Assembly presented their 14 recommendations on the proposed challenge to the Tolosa City Council. For several months, civil servants and political representatives of Tolosa City Council worked on the responses to the recommendations, which were presented at the public event held on 25 March 2023. The reports of the recommendations made by the members of the Assembly, as well as the City Council’s responses to each of them, are available on the project’s website. (available in Basque and Spanish). 

In order to inform the Citizens’ Assembly of the progress made in implementing the recommendations, the municipal representatives of the Tolosa Town Council and the members of the Assembly met again at the 25 May session. The municipal representatives also discussed the work carried out to date with the citizens and raised various questions. 

The Mayor of Tolosa, Andu Martinez de Rituerto, explained the importance of the deliberative process for the Town Council. The municipal representatives explained the progress and situation of the six recommendations that have been worked on in the Town Council. These 6 recommendations are: 

A. Inclusive architecture 

F. Etxegazte 

H. Young people, LGTBIQ+, suicide: care, education and intervention    

K. Space and leisure, young people (13/18)    

M. Green areas  

N. Institutional trust: permanent spaces for participation 

After the municipal representatives’ explanations, they stood in a circle to reflect together on the recommendations presented by the members. The members first shared their reflections on what they had heard and then individually asked questions regarding the recommendations. The municipal representatives then responded to the questions and concerns raised. Garikoitz Lekuona, Governance and Community Development Civil servant at Tolosa City Council, closed the session with an update on the outcome  and the next steps to be taken. Andu Martinez de Rituerto then outlined the challenges encountered so far in the implementation of the recommendations and the work to be done in the coming months. In order to follow up the process properly, the next follow-up meeting will be held in June 2025.

However, in order to keep track of the progress of the recommendations, a report will be shared with the members of the Assembly after 6 months. If there are any questions about the report, they will be answered. Regarding the next session, the members of the Assembly have stated that it would be advisable to have persons/representatives involved in the implementation of the recommendations present at the next face-to-face session to be able to listen to their explanations. 

Background: The journey of the Tolosa Citizens’ Assembly.  

In 2022 we launched the Tolosa Citizens’ Assembly together with the Tolosa Town Hall and various international and local stakeholders. At the international level we collaborated with the OECD and Democracy Next, and at the local level with Aztiker, Deliberativa, Aktiba (UPV-EHU university research group) and Prometea.  

In October 2022, 32 people from Tolosa, representing local diversity in terms of age, gender, educational level and place of residence, were selected through a civic lottery. 

From October to December 2022, the 32 citizens of Tolosa, selected through a civic lottery, participated in a 40-hour deliberation process to write the recommendations and answer the question posed by the Tolosa Town Council: What can the City Council of Tolosa do through public-community collaboration to achieve a Tolosa that improves the health and emotional well-being of all?     

To learn more about the process and access the various documents that have been produced, you can find all the information on the web: Asamblea Ciudadana de Tolosa (available in Basque and Spanish).