Climate Assemblies
Citizen assemblies bring together people with different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives to learn, deliberate and find common ground on complex issues.
The recommendations they produce can be ambitious, thoughtful and rooted in the experiences of ordinary people. But getting those recommendations in front of the right decision-makers - and turning them into political action - requires a different set of skills, relationships and opportunities.
That's where Hope for the Future comes in. We don't run the deliberative process itself. Instead, we work alongside assembly organisers, facilitators and participants, bringing Hope for the Future's expertise in constructive political engagement, tools and resources to help bridge the gap between deliberation and political action.
Written by Joe Gascoyne Thompson, Policy & Engagement Coordinator
Funded by Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, Hope for the Future has been working with climate assemblies and other deliberative democracy projects across the UK for the last two years, testing different approaches to post-assembly advocacy and learning what helps participants move from making recommendations to building relationships, securing commitments and influencing decisions.
Now entering the third and final year of the project, we're looking for four climate assemblies, citizens' juries or similar deliberative projects to work with over the next 12 months, at no cost to participating projects. Email joe.gascoyne-thompson@hftf.org.uk or contact us using the button below.
What have we achieved so far?
Over the first two years of the project, we've been testing what that support needs to look like in practice: when political engagement is most useful, how participants can be supported without compromising the integrity of the deliberative process, and what helps recommendations gain traction once an assembly has finished.
So far, the programme has helped assembly members move from recommendations to direct engagement with politicians. Our work has included supporting assembly members to meet MPs, bringing councillors into assembly showcases, helping participants develop clear political asks and supporting election candidates to make climate and nature commitments.
Alongside this practical support, we're using what we learn to develop the UK's first advocacy toolkit designed specifically to help climate assembly participants turn recommendations into political engagement.
We're taking that learning into the next phase, working directly with another five assemblies while developing practical resources that can ultimately be used much more widely.
During the 2025–26 school year, students across Holy Family Catholic Multi-Academy Trust took part in a School Citizen Assembly programme led by the University of Manchester in partnership with Chester Zoo. Hope for the Future joined the programme to help students take the next step: understanding how political engagement could increase the impact of the changes they were already making.
We created resources and asks for the Cumbria Assembly members alongside our partner, Shared Future.
For the next year, we're excited to be working alongside EDRC.
We're looking for four assemblies to work with!
Over the next 12 months, we're looking for four climate assemblies, citizens' juries or other deliberative democracy projects that would benefit from support to turn their recommendations into political engagement and action. You might be:
Currently running an assembly and thinking about what happens afterwards
Approaching the recommendations stage and wanting to build political engagement into your next steps
Working with participants from a recently completed assembly who want to continue taking their recommendations forward
Running another deliberative process on climate, nature or a closely related issue and interested in testing this approach
Support will be shaped around your project. You don't need to arrive with a fully formed advocacy plan, that's something we can help you develop. If you're interested, we'd love to hear about your assembly, where you are in the process and what you'd like to achieve. Email joe.gascoyne-thompson@hftf.org.uk or contact us using the button below.
What could support from Hope for the Future look like?
Our aim isn't to turn assembly members into campaigners. It's to give people who want to take their recommendations further the tools and opportunities to engage constructively with the democratic process.
Every assembly is different, so our support is tailored to the recommendations, participants and political context of each project.
Depending on what's most useful, we can help participants and organisers to:
1) Understand where power sits: identifying the politicians, institutions and other decision-makers with the ability to act on recommendations.
2) Turn recommendations into strong political asks: translating broad recommendations into specific, achievable requests that decision-makers can respond to.
3) Build confidence and advocacy skills: giving participants practical tools to communicate their experiences and recommendations effectively.
4) Prepare for political meetings: including understanding the politician, planning the meeting, agreeing roles and preparing questions and asks.
5) Build relationships with decision-makers: helping assemblies create opportunities for meaningful engagement with MPs, councillors and other political leaders.
6) Keep momentum going after the assembly: supporting participants to follow up commitments, continue relationships and identify further opportunities for influence.