Thinking about the Future? A Study of Three Citizens’ Juries on Onshore Wind Farms in Scotland

Mini-publics are the most lauded device for institutionalising deliberative democracy, of which citizens’ juries (CJs) are the most used. They offer an opportunity for citizens to deliberate on important and contentious issues, and to revise their preferences in light of deliberation. This paper analyses three CJs conducted in different locations in Scotland on the contested topic of onshore wind farms. The CJs were designed to inform Scottish policy debate about wind farms and public engagement processes. Jurors were asked the following question: ‘What should be the key principles for deciding about wind farm development, and why?’ Accordingly, the CJs were invited to engage with long-term considerations regarding policy, energy generation and climate change. Using findings from mixed methods research, the paper will reflect on the extent to which the CJs were ‘thinking about the future’, and the potential of democratic innovations to counter short-term thinking in policy and decision making.