INTERNATIONAL ASSEMBLIES
Based on the concept of "American Assemblies" in the USA, International Assemblies are non-partisan gatherings of "experts" with often deliberately opposing perspectives, who are brought together to examine and illuminate issues of world-wide public policy.
The Problem: Solutions to many social issues are partisan by nature, with political parties and special interest groups adhering to partisan philosophies that may exclude a whole range of potentially effective solutions.
The Process: Research about a particular topic is collated into a comprehensive literature review. Gaps in the literature are identified. Research is then commissioned or conducted to address any major questions not covered by past research. An International Assembly then distributes the results of the literature review and subsequent research to 50-100 experts representing all sides of the debate on a specific topic. These can include practitioners, researchers and theorists drawn from business, agriculture, law, labor, religion, military and social organizations in the public and private sectors. The experts are then invited to convene for 2-3 days at a central place to discuss the major aspects of the topic under consideration, and attempt to develop a set of solutions that may or may not form a policy consensus. The set of solutions becomes a "Solutions Menu" from which decision makers can draw any combination of possibilities. Such a menu of potential solutions can thus be used as a key resource, consisting of cutting edge research and solutions, for policy decision makers, researchers and concerned citizens. In the USA, such assemblies have served to inform policy at local, state and national levels.
International Assemblies do not attempt to take a definitive position on any subject, or try to institute a program of action. Rather, International Assemblies provide a body of knowledge, a setting, and a technique for bringing thoughtful persons together to discuss issues and voice their research findings and opinions. International Assemblies publish this body of knowledge which is then disseminated to governments, shadow governments and interested parties. The International Assembly is its participants, with the goal of the assembly process being to extract, co-ordinate and disseminate information, not to persuade or indoctrinate in favour of a particular position.
The History: Dwight Eisenhower established The American Assembly at Columbia University in 1950. Since then, hundreds of Assemblies have been conducted on a diverse range of topics throughout the United States. These have been conducted as joint projects between American Assembly, an affiliate of Columbia University, and local sponsors. Sample topics of national assemblies conducted in the U.S. include:
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· Reforming and Simplifying the Federal Tax System
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· America 's Health: Seeking Solutions for the 21st Century
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· International Public Policy: Issues and Choices for the U.S.
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· Public Policies Affecting Alcohol Problems
The Results: The American Assembly procedure has been followed successfully in national, regional, state and municipal Assemblies, as well as in other parts of the world. Some American Assemblies have distributed over 50,000 copies of their resulting "White Papers" providing potential solutions to the topic under discussion. These White papers were dispersed to media groups following a press conference, and then to officers of all levels of government and affected organizations. Some of these have later been published as books (or 'background volumes"), for example, The Promise of Tax Reform, edited by Joseph Pechman, Prentice Hall, 1985.
IDA ASSEMBLIES
