Informal discourses are a current trend. Roundtable discussions, mediation procedures, state-of-the-future workshops and consultative bodies of every sort accompany political decision-making. Proper decisions are supposed to be ensured through ordered and fair communication. At the same time, however, only very few studies are available, which describe systematically communications structures and procedures directly related to a policy discourse. On the basis of surveyed verbal indicators gathered in the course of a four-day, moderated debate on the development of environmental indicators, the researchers were able to show that it was possible to objectify the form of the dispute. The characteristic feature of the discourse under investigation here (scientists posing questions to representatives of various organizations and associations) is reflected in the interactions, as was revealed by means of an interaction process analysis. Thus, as a result of corresponding preparations and well-directed moderation, it was possible to hold a constructive discussion of research-relevant issues within a political setting among an expert public. Parallels with other findings in small group and discourse research as well as implications for the practice of moderators are discussed.