About

About

The Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss was one of four Citizens’ Assemblies contained in the Programme for Government, Our Shared Future. In February 2022, following debates in both Houses, the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss was formally established by way of resolutions of Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann.

The Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss was comprised of 100 members, including 99 members of the public, randomly selected from households across Ireland, and an independent Chairperson appointed by the Taoiseach.

At its final meeting on 21 January 2023, the Assembly voted on a series of propositions that were the culmination of careful deliberation and debate, informed by detailed input from experts, stakeholders and the general public. After deliberating on how the State can improve its response to the issue of biodiversity loss, the Assembly agreed 159 recommendations. These 73 high-level recommendations and 86 sectoral-specific recommendations were agreed through a mixture of consensus agreement and ballots.