FDSD Newsletter, Autumn 2023
Deepening Democracy for the Long Term | By Graham Smith
The following is an extract from ‘Can Democracy safeguard the Future’—By Graham Smith, Polity Press, 2021. Participatory democracy would appear to be a counterintuitive approach to long-term governance. The short-sightedness of the public is widely viewed...
Towards a New Civic Bureaucracy | New book by Matthew Quinn
The focus on the crisis of party-political democracy has diverted attention away from the role of wider institutions of governance. In his book, Towards a New Civic Bureaucracy: Lessons from sustainable development for the crisis of governance, Matthew Quinn redresses...
Time to reconcile conflict and collaboration—some insights from mediation | Blog by Andrea Westall
As we move ever closer to 2030 – the arbitrary endpoint for the collectively agreed UN Sustainable Development Goals – and in a year when the commitments of the climate negotiations at the 2021 UN Climate Change Conference, COP26 will need to be further strengthened,...
Designing for impact: the next stage for climate assemblies| Blog by Graham Smith
If the recent COP26 tells us anything, it’s that different ways of making hard decisions about our shared futures are needed. Too often critical decisions are made through last minute compromises, hammered out amongst small groups of negotiators behind closed doors,...
Is the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act standing up to the test of time and delivering for future generations? | Blog by Peter Davies
The Wellbeing for Future Generations (Wales) Act became law in 2015. A previous FDSD blog reflected on development of the Act from my perspective as Sustainable Futures Commissioner for Wales from 2011-16, setting out its genesis in the devolution process. This is now...
Beyond COP26: what next on Scotland’s sustainable development journey? | Blog by Paul Bradley
Living in Glasgow has been a somewhat surreal experience in recent weeks. The sounds of megaphones, police horses, and helicopters have been prominent in daily life. World leaders have come and gone, having spent an evening at my local museum. Hundreds of police lined...
Can Democracy Safeguard the Future? | New book by Graham Smith
Our democracies repeatedly fail to safeguard the future. From pensions to pandemics, health and social care through to climate, biodiversity and emerging technologies, democracies have been unable to deliver robust policies for the long term. In his new book, Can...
Reforming the civil service—no more short-term incentives or silo thinking?
Michael Gove, the Duchy of Lancaster, gave a thoughtful and thought-provoking Ditchley Annual Lecture on 27th June about the need to change how policy making is done in order to respond to today’s challenges. This statement, alongside discussions of the future of the...
UN Sustainable Development Goals—LGA and UKSSD launching ‘A guide for Councils’
The Local Government Association (LGA) in partnership with the UK Stakeholders for Sustainable Development (UKSSD) have launched a guide to help boost councils’ efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in England and Wales. The SDGs are an...
Leaders call on Prime Minister to create socially just and green recovery from Covid-19
FDSD, together with over 100 companies, universities, charities and trade associations, signed a letter to the UK Prime Minister urging that the recovery from COVID-19 use the Sustainable Development Goals to help “consolidate and future-proof these plans”. It argues...
FDSD welcomes UK Climate Assembly
FDSD has long supported the wider use of participatory and deliberative processes such as citizens’ assemblies in bringing the voice of citizens into political decision making. We are therefore delighted that the first weekend of the UK Climate Assembly has been a...
#TODAYFORTOMORROW | Lord Bird introduces Future Generations Bill
Our politics is too short-term. Our democracy seems unable to deal with long-term challenges. But change is at hand. With support from FDSD and other partners, The Big Issue founder, Lord Bird, has introduced the Future Generations Bill in the UK Parliament, and is...
Future Generations Podcast | Reasons to be Cheerful with FDSD trustee Andrea Westall
“When they go short-term, we go long-term…” FDSD trustee Andrea Westall recently joined Ed Miliband and Geoff Lloyd for their Reasons to be Cheerful Podcast, to discuss the urgent need for representation of future generations in today’s politics....
Democratic Reform, Intergenerational Justice and the Challenges of the Long-Term | Essay by Simon Caney
Philosophical essay by Simon Caney on the morality of prosperity, intertemporal politics and a re-imagination of our political life. Political life is dominated by ‘presentism’ and a focus on the short-term. This political myopia is harmful in two important ways....
Citizens’ assemblies: how to bring the wisdom of the public to bear on the climate emergency | Blog by Graham Smith
Citizens’ assemblies could be vital in kick-starting the tough steps needed to respond to the climate emergency, Chair of the FDSD board of trustees, Graham Smith, argues. But the detail of how they will work is critical. (This blog first appeared on The Conversation...
#FuturesCymru2019: Wales leads on embedding futures in public policy | Blog by Cat Tully
Great to see Wales continuing to lead the way on embedding long-term thinking and foresight in public policy at last week’s #FuturesCymru2019 ‘Shaping the Future’ conference. Building on its Wellbeing of Future Generations Act 2015 and its unique appointment of a...
A call to do politics differently—Blog by Peter Davies
The 2015 Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act requires public bodies in Wales to incorporate public involvement in their decision making. The explicit emphasis on engaging the public reflects the strong views expressed in the national conversation of 2014 that...
Extinction Rebellion and democratic renewal—Blog by Graham Smith
2018 witnessed the emergence of a dynamic, new climate change movement—Extinction Rebellion (XR). Building chapters around the UK, Europe and across the world, XR’s most visible action was its day of mass civil disobedience in November, with 6,000 activists shutting...Sign up for newsletter
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