How can we design synthesis and filtering systems that distill massive public input into actionable insights?

An open-source platform for large-scale opinion gathering and analysis that complements lottery-selected citizen assemblies by expanding participation and enhancing deliberative processes. Polis integrates with assemblies through six strategies: topic selection, topic framing, epistemic diversity...

Recent experiments (such as in Bowling Green, Kentucky) combine tools like Polis and Google Jigsaw’s Sensemaker to quickly understand a community’s priorities.

Goni suggests balancing “Big Data” computational methods with “Little Data”—specific examples, quotes, and stories preserving citizens’ actual reasoning—to ensure core threads of wider public opinion are elicited without losing personal nuance. Proposes democratizing data curation through domain ...