Martín Carcasson

Martín Carcasson, Ph.D., is a professor in the Communication Studies department of Colorado State University and the founder and director of the CSU Center for Public Deliberation (CPD). His research focuses on helping local communities address wicked problems more productively through improved public communication, community problem solving, and collaborative decision-making. The CPD is a practical, applied extension of his work and functions as an impartial resource dedicated to enhancing local democracy in northern Colorado.

deliberative democracy

Democracy Rising 31: Wicked Problems, Wise Communities, Part 3

I would argue our best long-term hope of improving our national system is for  more and more local communities to build up robust and productive deliberative systems, to the point that people see the viability and positive impacts of the deliberative alternative, build up their skills to engage each other, and re-establish their trust in each other and key institutions.

November 8, 2023

people talking

Democracy Rising 30: Wicked Problems, Wise Communities, Part 2

If we set out to design processes to ensure horrible, unproductive conversations that keep us from addressing shared problems well, our current national system would do very well.

October 2, 2023

deliberative democracy

Democracy Rising 29: Wicked Problems, Wise Communities, Part 1

At this point in the ongoing democratic experiments in the United States and around the world, two things have become exceedingly clear: democracy requires high-quality communication, and we do not get close to the necessary quality naturally.

September 5, 2023