Dear colleagues, trustees, staff, and friends of Involve,
As I step down from my role as chair of Involve's board of trustees and welcome Kevin Steel as my successor, I find myself reflecting on an extraordinary journey that began long before I formally became chair of the organisation in 2019.
My connection with Involve stretches back to 2008, when I first encountered Rich Wilson and Edward Anderson whilst working as a policy adviser for Hazel Blears in the Department for Communities and Local Government. Even then, Involve was the go-to organisation for practical guidance on public participation and deliberation, a reputation that has only strengthened over the years. The knowledge and expertise that the Involve team provides remains unparalleled, and I'm proud to have been part of an organisation that continues to lead the field.
When I became chair in 2019, democratic reform and public participation weren't high on the political agenda yet Involve's passion and enthusiasm remained undaunted. Since then though, we've witnessed what has been described as a deliberative wave sweeping across the world, with governments increasingly institutionalising deliberative methods and building them into their constitutional architecture.
Despite the deep political inertia we've often faced nationally, Involve has seized opportunities across the wider democratic ecosystem. In the devolved nations, we have delivered a wide range of projects, including supporting the Scottish government's development of a minimum income guarantee and our work in Northern Ireland on housing rights. We have developed and deepened our work with local authorities, on the Camden Data Charter and on the Grenfell Support Programme. Alongside this, our groundbreaking work through the Sciencewise programme has informed thinking on everything from genome editing to AI.
For me personally, it has been wonderful to see Involve leading thinking and practice in deliberation with combined authorities where I still believe there is huge potential to go further as mayors become bigger figures on the political scene and where the need for public accountability will grow. And a real highlight of my tie as chair was welcoming the global Democracy R&D Network to Manchester for its conference in 2020, hosted at the People’s History Museum - the national museum of democracy.
The organisation's commitment to putting citizens at the heart of decision-making has never been more important, and I look forward to watching from a different vantage as new innovations emerge and democratic transformation continues to unfold.
Perhaps most significantly during my time as chair, Involve has become a national, if not global, leader in putting citizens at the heart of tackling climate change and environmental degradation. We've taken these critical issues out of the technical sphere and made them matters of genuine public debate and deliberation.
Twenty years on from Involve's founding, we may still feel some distance from the democratic transformation we seek at the national level. On the global stage, with increasingly authoritarian regimes in what have hitherto been bastions of democracy and freedom, our cause has never been more pressing. But through Involve, we're nurturing democratic muscle memory amongst a growing number of citizens who participate in deliberative processes and genuinely enjoy their engagement. We're part of an international movement where, eventually, the feedback loops will be too strong for those in power to continue resisting. Representative democracy will either recede into autocracy or embrace its need to integrate more participative and deliberative approaches.
As I hand over to Kevin, my message is simple: let's keep going. Let's keep innovating. Let's see whether governments can keep up with Involve’s pace of change and ambition.
I want to thank the incredible Involve team, past and present, who have made this work possible. Both previous directors, Tim and Sarah, have been inspirational leaders to work with. I offer my very best wishes to Steph and Carly, Involve’s new interim co-CEOs, and to Gareth and Yas, the other members of the management team, who have a refreshing vision for how the organisation continues to learn and develop. And to the staff team, who are on the ground every day supporting people to have a meaningful say in the decisions that affect their lives and communities - bringing the principles of deliberative democracy to life. And finally to my fellow trustees who have provided such valuable guidance and support. To everyone who has taken part in Involve’s work and believed in the power of deliberative democracy - thank-you.
The future of democratic participation is bright, and I'm confident that under Kevin's leadership as chair, Involve will continue to be at the forefront of this vital work. The organisation's commitment to putting citizens at the heart of decision-making has never been more important, and I look forward to watching from a different vantage as new innovations emerge and democratic transformation continues to unfold.
Thank you for the privilege of serving as your chair. The journey continues, and I couldn't be more excited about what lies ahead.
Ed Cox
Outgoing Chair, Involve Board of Trustees