Better decisions start with more voices.

When everyone affected by a decision gets a real voice in making it, the solutions get better. Central Oregon has the people to prove it. COCAP builds the process that makes it possible.

Central Oregon has always had civic spirit. The question is how we turn it into shared action.

People here show up for their communities. That spirit is real—and it’s under pressure. Rapid growth, political tension, and economic stress are straining the trust that makes communities work.

The good news: those tensions are exactly what deliberative solutions address. When groups of residents come together to work through hard problems, something shifts. Trust builds. Solutions stick.

We proved it in 2024 when a representative sample of Central Oregonians came together to learn and deliberate on youth homelessness and delivered recommendations that local institutions are acting on today.

You can make a difference right now

The 2026 Community Solutions Assembly on AI starts with an Open Poll you can access today. Add your voice. It only takes a few minutes and it shapes everything that follows.

This isn’t another boring meeting.

It's a process—and every phase is open to you.

Most civic processes ask you to show up once, say your piece, and hope for the best. The 2026 Community Solutions Assembly on AI works differently. It’s built in four phases, each one adding depth and representation to the last. You can join at any point.

Open Poll | April–May

Share where you stand on AI and its impact on Central Oregon.
The Open Poll isn’t a traditional survey. It maps the community’s full opinion landscape, showing where people agree, where they diverge, and what common ground already exists. Anyone can participate.

Community Conversations | May–June

Small group conversations—online and in person—go deeper into what the Open Poll surfaced. These conversations are hosted by local partners across the region, and anyone is free to join.

Solutions Assembly | September–October

A demographically representative group of interested residents, randomly selected to reflect Central Oregon’s actual population, convenes to find common ground on real recommendations. Their conclusions go directly to local institutions.

Act & Mobilize | October 2026 and beyond

Recommendations move into action through local institutions, city and county officials, state representatives, and community-led efforts.

What deliberation actually produces.

The 2024 Deschutes Civic Assembly on Youth Homelessness was a real collaboration with real outcomes.

representative residents deliberated over multiple sessions

0 %

of participants said they’d recommend the experience to others

Active

city, county, and school district response to recommendations delivered by the Assembly

Together, we make democracy work—here in our region, on the issues that matter most. Join us.

COCAP is a Central Oregon nonprofit working with local government, schools, businesses, and community organizations to build civic infrastructure that actually reflects who lives here.

We’re not an advocacy group, and we don’t have a political agenda. We run structured processes that bring residents together and make sure the conversation goes somewhere.

This isn’t a conversation for its own sake. It’s a conversation with a destination.

FAQs

Fair questions deserve straight answers.

What's the process?

The 2026 Community Solutions Assembly on AI asks how Central Oregon can ensure the benefits of AI are widely shared and its risks responsibly managed. The Open Poll runs April–May. Community Conversations take place online and in person in communities around the region in May-June. The Community Solutions Assembly takes place in October.

Who actually participates in a Community Solutions Assembly?

Interested people are randomly selected to reflect the demographics of Central Oregon—age, geography, political views, income, and more. It’s genuinely representative.

Do local officials have to do anything with the recommendations?

They’re not legally bound, but the recommendations are public, documented, and delivered formally. COCAP builds accountability into the process, as these decision-makers know the community is watching what happens next.

Is this just for people who are already politically engaged?

No, and the process works better when it isn’t. COCAP is designed to reach people who feel left out of civic life, not just those who are already engaged. Stipends are provided to make participation accessible regardless of income or schedule.