Deep Democracy: A Public Health Tool to Improve Community Health and Well-Being

Abstract

This thesis introduces the Just Transition Framework to navigate the complex ways the extractive economy impacts population health, challenging the eJicacy of solutions that do not change this system. A new system or regenerative economy built around the universal goal of community health and well-being is envisioned using the Targeted Universalism Framework, which identifies three key barriers to achieving this goal and introduces three key policy groups for local governments to explore for solutions. Developing deep democracy as a public health initiative is supported for its ability to facilitate structural change, early connections to improving health outcomes, and potential for restorative justice with communities of color. Guidelines are crafted for local governments to implement deep democracy, providing a case example in King County, WA. Implementation considerations focus on increasing local resilience to prepare for policy set-backs as the extractive economy aims to protect itself. The vision is a national network of municipalities exercising deep democracy to facilitate community health and well-being.