Prof. TOM MOYLAN
Limerick, Ireland

Tom Moylan is Glucksman Professor of Contemporary Writing in English and Director of the Ralahine Centre for Utopian Studies at the University of Limerick in Ireland. He has written extensively on utopian literature and on the method and practice involved in the utopian process.

His books include

"Demand the Impossible: Science Fiction and the Utopian Imagination"
"Scraps of the Untainted Sky: Science Fiction, Utopia, Dystopia"
"Dark Horizons: Science Fiction and the Dystopian Imagination" (co-edited with Raffaella Baccolini)
" Not Yet: Essays on Ernst Bloch" (co-edited with Jamie Owen Daniel)
"Utopia-Method-Vision" (co-edited with Raffaella Baccolini, forthcoming).

Link: Ralahaine Centre for Utopian Studies

Dr. LYN CARSON
Sydney, Australia

Dr Lyn Carson is a senior lecturer in applied politics at the University of Sydney. She has written handbooks on consultation methods and many articles and book chapters on public participation. She is the author, with Brian Martin, of Random Selection in Politics.

Dr Carson draws on her earlier experience as a local councillor to design and conduct consultation processes. She teaches courses about public participation in decision making and conducts research into deliberative innovations. She is driven by the possibility of a world in which citizens can govern themselves and policy decision-making can be devolved to those most affected.

She has participated in many examples of active democracy-for example Australia's first consensus conference, Australia's first two deliberative polls, citizens' juries, and a combined citizen's panel and televote. She maintains an optimistic website: www.activedemocracy.net