beraadslamt

Beraadslamt is a term used in Dutch-language civic-technology and deliberative democracy discourse to describe a structured deliberation format designed to generate collective decisions on public issues. The format emphasizes inclusive participation, reasoned argument, and transparent outcomes. It is typically deployed in municipal governance, education, and community organizations to supplement traditional public consultations.

Beraadslamt procedures usually combine asynchronous online discussions with scheduled real-time meetings. Participants contribute in defined phases: input gathering, idea generation, argumentation, synthesis, and final decision or recommendation. Moderation is central to maintain civility, ensure equal voice, and document the reasoning behind conclusions. Decisions are often captured as proposals, reports, or policy notes with accompanying evidence and references.

The term appears to be a Dutch neologism formed from beraad (deliberation) and a suffix signaling a process or event. It is used mainly in the Netherlands and Flanders, and in international translations of Dutch civic-tech discussions. Its adoption is linked to efforts to systematize inclusive dialogue and produce accountable outputs from deliberative processes.

Applications include citizen assemblies, participatory budgeting workshops, school debates, and online policy labs. Tech facilitators may use forums, structured templates, decision logs, and time-boxed rounds to ensure accountability and traceability of deliberations. The approach aims to improve legitimacy and public trust by making reasoning explicit and resulting recommendations trackable, while requiring careful design to avoid exclusion and facilitation bottlenecks.

See also: deliberative democracy, citizen assembly, online deliberation, participatory budgeting.