During 1992–93 I acted as one of the seven commissioners of the Opsahl Commission: an independent enquiry into ways forward in Northern Ireland, which produced its report in June 1993. The Commission was a novel exercise in democracy, which sought to involve the people of Northern Ireland in the debate about its future. It received submissions from some 3,000 people and held public meetings and oral hearings throughout the region. The report made a number of recommendations which were subsequently endorsed in public opinion polls in Northern Ireland, Britain and the Republic of Ireland. Most of these recommendations stemmed from the people's sense of frustration and helplessness after a quarter of a century of violence and deadlock and their desire to have more control over their own future. To do so, they recognized, would also involve their taking responsibility for the situation, past and present. This recognition – that the source of the conflict lies inside rather than outside the province, with the people themselves – was the uncomfortable conclusion of most of those addressing the Commission. There is no ‘quick fix’ to Northern Ireland. This is why the Opsahl Commission recommended a series of ‘building blocks’ to help the different communities build up trust and experience of working together before they could arrive at some common ground on Northern Ireland's long-term future.