Last night, I spoke to a symposium of the good and the great of British media and influence at the We Are Names Not Numbers symposium, in the bizarre resort town of Portmeirion. I hoped to add a decent, citizen voice to the chitter-chatter. My call is for those who consider themselves the ‘opinion forming elite’ to now re-purpose as Catalyst Citizens – to work within a new order that sees a genuinely new dynamic emerge between Business, Government and the People.
I am genuinely delighted by all the feedback and occasional polemic generated by my Portmeirion presentation. Julia Hobsbawm challenged me to deliver a ‘Big Idea’ – and The New Civic Responsibility certainly seems to have stimulated thought and debate. I am particularly indebted to David Aaronovitch and Charlie Burgess for their critique – as we try and understand the new world order, there is a complex tone and language to navigate. I will heed their advice well. Above all, the Portmeirion experience demonstrates that the concept of Public Engagement will enjoy rich and open discussion. Long may this flourish. It is only through a new and dynamic dialogue that we can begin to address the really big issues of our time. We should respect and embrace the outliers and understand that none of us can dictate the conversations, merely participate and inform them.
To read the full text of my ‘speech’, please download Public Engagement and a New Civic Responsibility.
I am still on the snow-swept shores of North Wales and will report back later with more thoughts from the past two days.
