Polity Atlas

How each model solves the same problems

Instead of “democracy versus anarchism”, compare the concrete ways collective problems get solved.

Question✕✕✕
How are decisions made?Randomly selected citizens studied, held hearings and voted on a recommendation; the public then voted in a referendum with supermajority thresholds.Sortition / citizens' assemblyGrand Council of 50 chiefs chosen by clan mothers; questions pass between groups of nations, each seeking unanimity, with the Onondaga Firekeepers confirming or resolving disagreement.A stratified random sample of 523 voters deliberated in moderated groups and plenaries and answered questionnaires before and after; no decisions were taken.Sortition / citizens' assembly
How are conflicts resolved?Neutral chair, plenary votes among members, and a referendum as final arbiter.The Confederacy describes the Grand Council as resolving disputes among the nations and planning for the welfare of all the people.Balanced briefing materials, trained neutral moderators and competing experts structured disagreement.
How are public goods funded?Publicly funded independent assembly and secretariat, disbanded after its report.UnknownPrivately funded; produced published results, media coverage and a peer-reviewed study.
How is AI used?No AI role.No documented AI role.No AI role.
What are the main risks?Voters not sharing the assembly's learning; high referendum thresholds; no map of how the system would work in practice.CLM-0067Operates alongside US and Canadian governments, which limits its practical jurisdiction; its rule of unanimity within and between blocs requires broad agreement.CLM-0117CLM-0118Self-selection into attendance; artificial setting; analysis by the method's designers; no institutional uptake.

This illustrates differences in design; it is not a universal claim about outcomes. Each cell links to mechanisms and the claims behind them.