Working session with expert Michael Saward<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n On June 24, we held a working session at Arantzazulab with various stakeholders from our ecosystem and expert Michael Saward.\u00a0 Michael Saward is a Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of Warwick. Born in Tasmania, he earned his honours degree at the Australian National University and completed his PhD at the University of Essex. Before joining Warwick in 2012, he taught at the Open University \u2014where he served twice as Head of Department\u2014 and at Royal Holloway. His research focuses on contemporary democratic theory and the concept of representation. He has published several award-winning books, including The Representative Claim<\/em>, Democratic Design<\/em>, Enacting European Citizenship<\/em>, The Oxford Handbook of Politics and Performance<\/em>, and he edited two new books in 2024. He has held residencies in Mexico, Brazil, and Australia, and currently continues to explore how ideas, design and representation impact democracy.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019d like to learn more about his work, here is the recommended reading<\/a> for the session: a text that summarizes the main ideas of his book.<\/p>\n\n\n It was also an opportunity to discuss the work being carried out by various actors in the Basque Country to deepen democracy and strengthen our communities, as well as to explore Michael Saward\u2019s work and contributions more closely. We reflected on several key questions, including: What should we consider when building a solid foundation to strengthen our democracy? \u00a0 After an intense and enriching session, the following three ideas summarise the key aspects of the conversations held: <\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. Representativeness<\/strong>. 2. Hybrid Models for Deepening Democracy<\/strong>.\u00a0 3. Sustaining Interdisciplinary Reflection on Democracy<\/strong>. Summer Course organized together with the University of the Basque Country (EHU)<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n On June 25, we held the summer course \u201cInnovating democracy: What can we contribute? An international perspective and dialogue\u201d at Gandiaga Topagunea, the headquarters of Arantzazulab. The event gathered around 70 participants and Irune Berasaluze, Deputy for Governance of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa, opened the course.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The course directors, Naiara Goia and Ione Ardaiz, presented the rational and approach of the course. Both emphasised that, in the face of global authoritarian threats, there is a clear will in the Basque Country to deepen democratic culture and advance democracy innovation through innovative strategies led by a range of local institutions and actors. Moreover, they claimed that the course aims to develop and highlight our contribution to the global debate on democracy innovation by combining local experiences with the perspectives of international experts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In the second part of the day, two global leaders delivered inspiring keynote presentations. H\u00e9l\u00e8ne Landemore (Yale University), in her talk \u201cThe Market, the Forum, and the Jury: Revisiting Models of Democracy\u201d, presented the foundations of the open democracy concept, advocating for more direct and inclusive citizen participation. She also addressed the importance of deliberation, as well as the opportunities and challenges posed by digital technologies, encouraging reflection on 21st-century models of democracy.<\/p>\n\n\n Michael Saward (University of Warwick) gave a talk titled \u201cChallenges of Democratic Design\u201d. He began by describing the current state of democracy, outlining today\u2019s key challenges and sharing his proposals to address them from a political theory perspective. He then developed his reflections on democracy design, highlighting the importance of context and exploring how subnational regions can contribute to addressing global democratic challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n Two round tables concluded the summer course. In the first, representatives from local institutions presented the strategies and projects they are developing to deepen democracy in our region. Under the title \u201cStrategies and experiences of local institutions in deepening democratic culture and strengthening the sense of community,\u201d contributions were made by Mikel Hidalgo, Coordinator of Social Innovation and the 2030 Agenda projects at Presidency in the Basque Government; Ana Aguirre, Director of Open Government and Good Governance at Department of Governance, Digital Administration and Self-Government in the Basque Government; Iosu Arraiz, Director of Strategy and Etorkizuna Eraikiz at the General Deputy\u2019s Area in the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa; Ainhoa Arrona, Researcher at Orkestra-Basque Institute of Competitiveness; and Naiara Goia, Arantzazulab\u2019s Managing Director. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In the second round-table, promoters of the various initiatives promoted by Arantzazulab shared their experiences and reflections. Under the title \u201cVariations, scenarios, and opportunities for democracy in the 21st century. A conversation among the leaders of research and experimentation initiatives promoted by Arantzazulab,\u201d presentations were given by Andoni Eizagirre, Mondragon University; Arantxa Mendiharat, Deliberativa; Eider Aldape, Maraka; Maria Ajuria, Farapi Kooperatiba and member of the Co-creation Ecosystem promoted by Arantzazulab; Beatriz Belmonte, funder and director of Better Public Services, and researcher in the \u201cDemocracy in the digital age\u201d research promoted by Arantzazulab; and Ione Ardaiz, Arantzazulab. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Multiple perspectives have come together at the summer course held in Arantzazu, and it has been encouraging to see that there is a shared desire to deepen democracy innovation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Working session with H\u00e9l\u00e8ne Landemore<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n On June 26th, a group from the Arantzazulab ecosystem gathered once again to hold a reflection session with H\u00e9l\u00e8ne Landemore. <\/p>\n\n\n\n H\u00e9l\u00e8ne Landemore is a researcher at Yale University and a leading international voice in the field of democracy innovation. She is a Professor of Political Science specialising in political theory. Her main areas of research and teaching include democratic theory, political epistemology, and the ethics and politics of artificial intelligence. She is a member of the Ethics in AI Institute at the University of Oxford and serves as an advisor to OpenAI\u2019s Democratic Inputs to AI programme. She served on the Governance Committee of the most recent French Citizens\u2019 Convention and is currently undertaking work supported by Schmidt Futures through the AI2050 program. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019d like to learn more about her work, here are two recommended readings for the session:\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this session, as we did in the June 24 gathering, we engaged in a collective reflection on Arantzazulab\u2019s strategic framework, approaches, and initiatives. It was also an opportunity to discuss the work that a range of actors are carrying out in the Basque Country to deepen democracy and strengthen community, as well as to learn more about H\u00e9l\u00e8ne Landemore\u2019s research and contributions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n We proposed several starting questions to kick off the conversation, including: <\/p>\n\n\n\n From the working session with H\u00e9l\u00e8ne Landemore and the actors in the Arantzazulab ecosystem, we would highlight the following three ideas: <\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. Open Democracy<\/strong>.\u00a0 2. Digital Technologies<\/strong>.\u00a0 3. Taking a Wide Focus<\/strong>.\u00a0 The End of a Rich and Inspiring Week<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n The week has sparked deep reflection and renewed our strength and inspiration to continue deepening democratic culture. Our warmest thanks to all of you who joined us in Arantzazu \u2014 and especially to the two international experts who spent the entire week with us. Your participation and contributions have opened new paths for continuing to generate knowledge through these encounters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This week\u2019s conversations have revealed many promising threads: new themes to explore, future opportunities for collaboration, and enriching spaces for mutual learning. This is not the end \u2014 we will continue deepening on these threads and walking this path together with all of you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" From June 23 to 27, we had a rich and intense week at Arantzazulab. We have been deeply engaged in reflecting on lessons learned from diverse initiatives, building international connections, and sharing collective insights on democracy innovation.\u00a0 On June 24, we held a working session with Michael Saward (University of Warwick). On June 25, we…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":13116,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13169","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13169","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13169"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13169\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13169"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13169"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13169"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750785826976-edited.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
What opportunities do we see in the Basque Country to deepen our democratic practices? And how would we describe the challenges or obstacles we may face along the way?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We explored the question of what representation truly means. What conditions must be in place to ensure meaningful representation? Who are the key unelected representatives in our context? Who possesses democratic legitimacy? And who speaks on behalf of nature in the Basque Country?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Democracy must respond to the realities of real people. With this in mind, the session opened up a space for reflecting on hybrid approaches to reimagining democracy. These approaches resonate with Saward\u2019s \u201csecond-order\u201d framework, or as reinterpreted during the session, as a constellation of interconnected models: representative, associative, deliberative, participatory. Rather than considering these models as isolated or self-contained, we reflected on the relevance of seeing them as mutually enriching and interrelated.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is a notable lack of spaces for democratic practice. Saward proposed the creation of a Basque Democracy Commission\u2014an interdisciplinary forum where we could continue to explore core democratic questions: What does democracy mean to us in the Basque Country? How are we framing it? What are the unspoken challenges we face in the Basque Country? What are the incentives to make a contribution to democracy?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750848601177-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750848643162-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750852703001-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750852683733-1024x462.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750931209824-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750933129546-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750933140250-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1750933129407-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n
\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/arantzazulab.eus\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/1751023712236-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
We discussed different ways democracy can be practised. As an example, Citizens\u2019 Assemblies today often focus on a specific question, which limits what participants can discuss. But we need to ask ourselves: What are these Citizens\u2019 Assemblies really for?\u00a0
If we truly want to foster a democratic culture, we need to go a step further and involve citizens in setting the agenda itself. Deliberation can be an appropriate method for defining agendas \u2014 not just for answering predefined questions.\u00a0
We also need to keep exploring the enabling conditions: What kind of civic infrastructure and culture does deliberation require? What kind of political culture does democracy need to thrive?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Digital technologies \u2014 and artificial intelligence in particular \u2014 present new challenges for democracy, but also create new opportunities. They can help redistribute power, improve access to information, and counter autocratic tendencies.\u00a0
We reflected on how these tools could support deliberation \u2014 for example, through Chris Summerfield\u2019s \u201cHabermas machine\u201d \u2014 and how AI could support sortition and contribute to fairer citizen selection processes.\u00a0
Key questions remain: What kinds of deliberation are possible in digital spaces? How should they be designed? Who should design them? Can we use AI to augment, rather than replace, human democratic reasoning?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We also reflected on how, in the Basque Country, democracy is understood in a broad sense: as a way to strengthen communities, organisations, cooperatives, and to foster wellbeing and territorial development.\u00a0
We discussed several examples: how to meaningfully include students’ voices in university governance; the concept of \u201cinvestors\u2019 assemblies\u201d developed by Landemore with Zingales and Hart; and the connections between community development and Citizens\u2019 Assemblies.\u00a0
Above all, we emphasised the importance of moving beyond isolated, one-off processes. We must design long-term democratic infrastructures and nurture the political and civic culture needed to sustain them.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n