The Centre subsequently moved to the Australia and New Zealand School of Government Institute for Governance (ANZSIG) at the 海角射区 (UC), later incorporated into the Institute for Governance and Policy Analysis. During this period, Centre staff included John Dryzek, Simon Niemeyer, Nicole Curato, and Juliana Rocha, alongside Selen Ercan, who had been appointed as a postdoctoral research fellow at UC in 2012.

In its first year at UC, the Centre secured a series of major Australian Research Council awards, including an ARC Laureate Fellowship (Dryzek), a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award Fellowship (Curato), and two ARC Discovery Projects (Dryzek, Ercan, Niemeyer). These grants supported the Centre鈥檚 consolidation in its new location and the development of a vibrant research culture, anchored by regular seminar series, weekly morning teas, annual conferences, reading groups, and collaborative research projects.

One of the most significant initiatives to emerge during this period was the Deliberative Democracy Summer School, pioneered by Curato in collaboration with Centre staff, which quickly became the Centre鈥檚 flagship training program. This period was also marked by the publication of the (Oxford University Press, 2018) co-edited by John Dryzek.

During this period, the Centre saw its first PhD completions at the 海角射区, including Kei Nishiyama (supervised by Dryzek and Ercan), Emerson Sanchez (supervised by Dryzek and Curato), Pierrick Chalaye (supervised by Dryzek), Jane Alver (supervised by Ercan and Dryzek), and Nardine Alnemr (supervised by Curato and Niemeyer).

The Centre鈥檚 research community continued to expand through the appointment of postdoctoral research fellows across ARC-funded projects, including Jonathan Pickering, Ana Tanasoca, Jensen Sass, Quinlan Bowman, Hedda Ransan-Cooper, Sonya Duus, Hannah Barrowman, Lucy Parry, and Francesco Veri.

Following the Centre鈥檚 successful bid for strategic funding from the 海角射区 in 2019, the Centre was formally established in 2020. It was initially located within the Institute for Governance and Policy Analysis in the Faculty of Business, Government and Law, with John Dryzek as Director. The directorship subsequently passed to Simon Niemeyer (2020鈥�2022).

Strategic research funding from UC during this period enabled the appointment of  and Nick Vlahos as postdoctoral research fellows, strengthening the Centre鈥檚 research capacity and profile.

Integration into the Faculty of Business, Government and Law also expanded the Centre鈥檚 teaching role. Selen Ercan and Nicole Curato redesigned and convened the undergraduate unit Investigating and Explaining Society, which was delivered for three consecutive years. In 2021, the teaching team鈥攍ed by Ercan, Curato, and Asenbaum鈥攔eceived the 海角射区鈥檚 Teaching Prize for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning.

Between 2022 and 2025, the Centre continued to flourish under the directorship of Selen Ercan, strengthening existing work and developing new collaborations with state and federal governments interested in deliberative engagement and democratic resilience in Australia.

Alongside ongoing projects, the Centre produced a number of major research outputs during this period, the first comprehensive, open-access research methods volume in the field, (2022, Oxford University Press), edited by Selen Ercan, Hans Asenbaum, Nicole Curato, and Centre Associate Ricardo Mendon莽a (Federal University of Minas Gerais) and the first national , supported by the Australian Government.

In 2022, the Centre was renewed for a further three-year term. During this renewal period, the appointment of research fellows and extended the Centre鈥檚 research agenda with a stronger focus on Australian politics, while deepening its engagement with democratic practice, institutions, and reform. In 2024,  joined the Centre as Practice Lead, strengthening its engagement with policy and practice and developing tailored masterclasses for practitioners. 

Throughout this period, the Centre was also successful in securing three Australian Research Council grants and fellowships. In 2024, Curato was awarded an ARC Future Fellowship for a project on global deliberation (subsequently declined following her appointment at the University of Birmingham). In 2025, Ercan, McSwiney, and John Dryzek received an ARC Discovery Project grant on democratic resilience and de-territorialised conflicts, while Asenbaum was awarded an ARC DECRA Fellowship for his project on smart democracy.

The year 2024 marked the Centre鈥檚 tenth anniversary at the 海角射区. This milestone was celebrated with a special seminar series organised around ten key questions in deliberative democracy research, alongside other key activities. UNCOVER published an extensive feature鈥�Deliberation at the Heart of Democracy: 10 Years of CDDGG at UC鈥攈ighlighting the Centre鈥檚 contributions to the 海角射区 and the broader field over the past decade.

In 2025, the Centre adopted the shorter name Centre for Deliberative Democracy for clarity and brevity, while continuing its research on global governance.

PhD completions during this period included Friedel Marquardt (supervised by Mary Walsh, with Asenbaum and Ercan), Madeleine Egan (supervised by Dryzek and Ercan), and Mohammad Abdul-Hwas (supervised by Asenbaum).

At the beginning of 2026, as Selen Ercan鈥檚 term as Director came to an end,  was appointed as the new Centre Director. The Centre continues to be globally recognised for its research excellence, innovative teaching, high-quality PhD training, and strong culture of collaboration and mutual support.