Janet Rice Reflects on Collaboration in Politics at Stories from the Field
Former Senator Janet Rice shared how collaboration, consensus, and good facilitation can make politics – and any group – work better together.
On 27 August 2025, Groupwork Centre welcomed Janet Rice to Stories from the Field, our monthly lunchtime series where facilitators, associates, and friends gather to reflect on the practice of collaboration. Speaking from Bunurong Country, Janet – former senator and long-time activist – shared her experiences as both a politician and facilitator, drawing on her years with the Australian Greens.
Host Tanya Edlington began by naming the intention of the session: to explore how politics might be “the ultimate collaborative space,” a place where people hear one another across differences and work in service of something greater. Janet smiled at the idea, acknowledging both its truth and its difficulty. “It can be,” she said, “but only when people remember who they’re there for – the citizens, the country, the planet.”
Janet shared stories from nine years in Parliament, alongside three decades of activism and community organising. She described moments of deep frustration, but also surprising connection. One example was when she reflected on how the media often highlights division and drama, thus overlooking the quieter moments of cooperation that happen behind the scenes while the respectful conversations and shared decisions rarely make headlines but quietly keep democracy alive.
Throughout the session, she drew clear links between facilitation and politics: both require listening through disagreement, staying grounded when emotions rise, and remembering the shared purpose beneath competing needs. “Collaboration isn’t about everyone agreeing,” she reflected. “It’s about holding steady when you don’t.”
When Tanya opened the floor for questions, the chat lit up and faces leaned in. John, one of the participants, asked whether Janet had empathy for groups that find consensus too hard and instead use consent-based decision-making. Janet smiled and said she sees it as “a version of consensus – finding something the group can live with.” The real issue, she explained, is when shared values or good facilitation are missing: “That’s when people think consensus doesn’t work – but that’s not consensus at all.”
In the end, it was a lively and insightful discussion. Her concluding message was simple but important: “Whether it’s tens, hundreds, or millions of people, working together effectively is the number one thing we need to be able to do. And to do that well, we need good collaborative processes – and good facilitators.”
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Join our next Stories from the Field as Jonathan Bedloe takes us inside the Tasmanian Men’s Gathering 2025, exploring how the Community of Selves model helped participants face fear, connect deeply, and find courage through facilitation. Click here to register.