Community Forum - Making Democrach Work as it Should

Submitted by Andie Mewbourn

February 21, 2010 - Orange Beach, AL - Why does it seem that citizens have retreated from public life and do little about the issues that concern them? Is reclaiming the public’s role essential to our community’s prosperity? What should we do about it? An Alabama Issues Forum on this issue will be conducted at the Orange Beach Public Library on Thursday, March 4, 2010, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

In a deliberative forum, citizens weigh carefully the attractions, weaknesses, costs, and consequences of differing perspectives on how to approach an issue. Most importantly, citizens identify acceptable and unacceptable tradeoffs among the differing approaches. By identifying what is acceptable and unacceptable, citizens create common ground for potentially more effective action on the issue. Discussion at this event will be guided using the issue book “Democracy’s Challenge: Reclaiming the Public’s Role,” published by the National Issues Forum and available online at www.nifi.org (click Government & Politics).

Alabama Issues Forums is a project of the David Mathews Center for Civic Life, in cooperation with the College of Liberal Arts at Auburn University and a number of partners around the state. The Mathews Center is a non-partisan, tax-exempt entity for the purpose of fostering public deliberation and innovative community decision-making. For more information on Alabama Issues Forums, visit www.mathewscenter.org.

For more information on this event, visit the Library website at www.orangebeachlibrary.org or 251-981-2923.