911勛圖

Paradoxically, while BC���s formal laws and institutions would continue to rank highly in global democracy indices, a number of factors are also driving increased democratic instability, including new forms of mis/disinformation, electoral interference, political polarization, attacks on civic space and human rights, and declining participation through traditional civic channels such as voting.

In his presentation, Robin encouraged the Committee to define democratic engagement more widely than simply voting, with a need to consider areas such as civic space, civic education, public participation, deliberative democracy, and the systems that deliver transparent, accessible and evidence-based information. This follows findings from the OECD���s 2024 Trust Survey that trust in government is more than three times higher among people who feel they have a say in what the government does compared to those who don���t. Conversely, if citizens don���t feel like their voices matter or that democracy is working for them, the appeal of anti-democratic populism may increase and the resilience of our institutions may weaken.

The presentation advanced eight proposals to enhance democratic engagement in British Columbia, including:

1. Developing a strategy for ���mainstreaming��� public participation in government decision-making to increase innovation, policy continuity and the return-on-investment for public spending.
2. Investing in ���next generation��� civic education that cultivates more active forms of citizenship, grounded in students��� sense of agency and confidence as problem solvers.
3. Joining the Open Government Partnership to access a global hub where governments work to advance their commitments for increased accountability, transparency and participation.
4. Commissioning a citizens��� assembly to help resolve complex policy issues such transportation funding, healthcare transformation, or norms for AI use in the BC public service ��� building upon the OECD���s recognition of a ���deliberative wave��� that is helping governments around the world to hear from the silent majority, depolarize complex issues, and demonstrate responsiveness.
5. Seeking out Indigenous worldviews on democracy, so that the renewal of democracy embodies the commitments laid out in Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.
6. Fostering dialogue to reduce polarization in BC on issues such as forestry, conservation, wildfire, toxic drug supply and public health, recognizing that three in four British Columbians think polarization or political attitudes becoming more extreme is a threat to our democracy.
7. Centring most-impacted voices on issues such as public safety, encampments, climate action and conservation, with the aim to build reciprocal relationships and share power with communities.
8. Implementing a BC Fund for Democratic Resilience and Renewal to accelerate innovation and provide strong value-for-money (by comparison, the budget for BC���s 2024 election was $94 million over four years).