The Integration of Deliberative Mini-publics in Collaborative Governance Through the Perspectives of Citizens and Stakeholders: The Case of the Education Reform in French-speaking Belgium

The integration of deliberative democracy within larger schemes of policy-making of collaborative governance is a key challenge. Such integration potentially means changes in the role and in the power relationships between the actors of collaborative governance. Indeed, it brings in citizens – who were traditionally not formally involved – along with stakeholders – who were traditionally involved. Through the case of a large-scale education reform in the French-Speaking Community of Belgium, this paper seeks to explore how these actors react to the use of deliberative mini-publics and regard their legitimacy.