Citizen Participation E-Book

E-Book Table of Contents

    Foreword

      - How this Handbook Fits into the Big Picture

      - Making Government Effective

      - Appetizers

      - Entrees

      - Desserts

      - How this Handbook Fits into the Bigger Picture

      - IPMP: the Institute for Participatory Management & Planning

      - Credits

      Chapter I: Introduction

        - The Way We—as a Society—do Our Public-Sector Problem-Solving—and Decision-Making is Embarrassingly Ineffective

        - The Following Scenario, Unfortunately, is Far Too Typical

        - Grid-Lock

        Chapter II: An Overview

          - Mutual Frustration and Ineffectiveness

          - You and You Career

          - Your Effectiveness

          - Implementation Geniuses

          - The SDIC course: Systematic Development of Informed Consent

          - The CPO course: Citizen Participation-by-Objectives

          - Your Options

          Chapter III: Principles of Citizen Participation

          A.  Why Projects and Programs Get Stopped (Principles 1 - 4)

          B.  Why your Public Wants You to be Reasonable and Responsible, Even When They are Not (Principles 5 & 6)

          C.  What Really Counts Is “Informed Consent”  (Principles 7 - 11)

          D.  Some of the Basics of “How CP Works”  (Principles 12 & 13)

          E.  How the Various PAIs’ Motives, Perceptions, Values and Abilities affect CP (Principles 14 - 24)

          F.  How Your Motives, Perceptions, Values, and Abilities affect Your CP (Principles 25 - 28)

          G. Some of the Things CP Can Accomplish for You (Principles 29 - 34)

          H. DOs and DON’Ts of CP (Principles 35 - 50)

          I. CP Dilemmas (Principles 51 - 60)

            Chapter IV: Citizen Participation Objectives

              - Why Should You Do Citizen Participation

              - What is “Informed Consent”?

                      The Role of Informed Consent
                      How does One Develop Informed Consent?

              -  The 15 CP Objectives

            A: The Five Responsibility Objectives
                #1: Establish the Legitimacy of your Agency and your Project
                #2: Maintain the Legitimacy of your Agency and your Project
                #3: Establish the Legitimacy of your Problem-Solving and Decision-Making Process
                #4: Maintain the Legitimacy of your Processes
                #5: Establish and Maintain the Legitimacy of Major Assumptions and Earlier Decisions

            B: The Five Responsiveness Objectives
                #6: Get to Know all the Potentially Affected Interests        
                #7: Get to See the Project through Their Eyes
                #8: Identify and Understand Problems
                #9: Generate Alternative Solutions
                #10: Articulate and Clarify the Key Issues

            C:  The Effectiveness Objectives
                #11: Protect and Enhance your Credibility
                #12: Have all of the Information that you need to Communicate to the Various Interests Received and Understood by Them
                #13: Receive and Understand all the Information that the Various Interests Need to Communicate to You

              -  The De-Polarizing Objectives

              - #14: Finding Common Ground among Polarized Interests

                        Some Game-Theory Basics
                        There is a bit of a Chicken-and-Egg Problem
                        Back to CP Objective #14
              - #15:  Depolarizing Interests Who are Polarized for Some Other Reason

              - Shape Your CP Program around Your CP Needs

              Chapter V: Citizen Participation Techniques

                - The Table of CP Techniques and CP Objectives shows each Technique’s Strengths and Weaknesses
              - Additional PROs and CONs that each Technique has

                - Here’s how the table displays these PROs and CONs

                          #1:  Holding or Attending Meetings and Hearings (CP Technique #1)

                - Some Basic Principles that Apply to all the different Types of Meetings

                          #1A: Working Meetings
                          #1B: “Open” Meetings
                          #1C: Forums
                          #1D: Public Mass Meetings
                          #1E: Public Hearings
                          #1F: Open Houses
                          #1G:  Town Meetings
                          #1H:  Samoan Circles

              #2: Advisory Committees (CP Technique #2)
                    #2A:  Committees that give Popularity-Type Advice
                    #2B:  Committees that give Content-Type Advice
                    #2C:  Blue-Ribbon Panels
                    #2D:  Watch-Dog Advisory Committees
                    #2E:  Constituency-Building Advisory Committees
                    #2F:  Depolarizing Advisory Committees
                    #2G:  Mediating Advisory Committees
                    #2H:  Gophers
                    #2I:  Foxes
                    #2J:  Beavers

              #3:  Nominal Group Workshops

              #4:  Using the Mass Media to Communicate

              #5:  Project Newsletters

              #6:  Napoleon’s Idiot

              #7: Informing the Public about Your Decision-Making Process

              #8:  Mapping Socio-Political and Environmental Data

              #9:  Presenting the Public the Full Range of Feasible Alternatives
                    #9A:  Presenting the Public the Full Range of Options
                    #9B:  Fish-Bowl Planning

              #10:  Illustrating the Final Form of a Proposed Alternative in Laymen’s Terms

              #11:  Dealing with the Public in the Agency Offices

              #12:  Installing an Ombudsman

              #13:  Encouraging Internal Communication

              #14: Gaming and Role-Playing

              #15:  Operating a Field Office

              #16:  Making the Most of Existing Mechanisms
                      #16A:  Clubs, Civic Groups, and Other Existing Organizations
                      #16B:  Newsletters, other Publications and the Media
                      #16C:  Existing Institutions, School Systems, etc. . .
                      #16D:  Making the Most of the Other Problem-Solving Efforts

              #17:  Open a Channel of Communication with Each PAI

              #18: Monitoring the Mass Media and Other Non-Reactive Learning

              #19:  Collecting Data; Carrying out Surveys

              #20:  Examining Past Actions of a PAI

              #21:  Experiencing Empathy

              #22A:  Being a Participant Observer
                      #22B:  Focus Groups

              #23:  Employing Local Citizens on the Project

              #24: Monitoring New Developments in Systems that may Affect Your Project

              #25:  Conducting a Background Study

              #26:  Hiring an Advocate for One or Several Affected Interests

              #27:  Looking for Analogies

              #28:  Cataloguing of Solutions Concepts

              #29:  Conducting Charrette or Other Creativity Enhancing Techniques
                      #29A:  Charrette
                      #29B:  Brainstorming Sessions

              #30:  Mediating a Conflict Between Different Interests

              #31:  Being a “Good Samaritan” by Helping Solve Problems Outside Your Scope of Responsibility

              #32:  Monitoring the Actual Impacts of a Project

              #33:  “Delphi” Techniques
                      #33A:  Creating a “Delphi” Crystal Ball
                      #33B:  Doing a “Delphi” Public Survey
                      #33C:  “Delphi” Intelligence Gathering

              #34:  Lost Letter

              #35:  Telephone Hot-Line 800-Number

              #36:  Poster Campaign

              #37:  Keeping a Record of Input Receiving (and What You are Doing with It)
                    #37A: Responsiveness Summary / Listening Log
                    #37B: Blogging
                    #37C: Audience Response Systems

              #38:  Using the Computer, . . . the Internet, . . . Television and Radio . . . as Technology-Enabled Responsiveness Tools
                      #38A:  Telephones, FAX Machines, and E-Mail as a CP Technique
                      #38B:  Bulletin Boards
                      #38C:  Using your own Web Site
                      #38D:  Using the PAIs’ Web Sites

                Chapter VI: The Management of Your CP Program

                Step 1:  Assess Your CP Needs
                        1.  Who Should Do the CP Needs Assessments and Why?
                        2.  Some Notes About the “CP Needs Assessment Worksheets”
                        3.  Using CP Worksheets A1- A15

                Step 2:  Examine Your CP Resources
                        Using CP Worksheet B

                Step 3:  Review Your CP Resources in Light of Your CP Needs

                Step 4:  Create Your CP Program

                Step 5:  Identify and Program Your CP Tasks

                Step 6:  Interface Your CP Tasks with Your Technical Tasks
                        Personal Assignments

                Step 7:  CP Training
                        Technical-Level CP Training

                Step 8:  On-Going Supervision and Coaching

                Step 9:  De-Briefing Your CP Staff

                Step 10:  Evaluating and Adjusting Your CP Program

                  Appendix

                    Chapter VII: Some Decision-Making Cases

                    A:  A Revitalization Plan for Downtown Area
                        Background
                        Assistant Community Director
                        Former Mayor and Council Woman
                        Merchants’ Point of View
                        The View of a Retired Person

                    B:  South of St. James Town

                    C:  Don Vale
                        Tenants and Property Owners
                        Leadership: Indigenous or Professional

                    D:  How a Bid for the Winter Olympic Games Failed
                        Background
                        View from one of the Anti-Olympic Organizers
                        Perception of the Olympics General Secretary

                    E:  Improvements to a Highway Intersection

                    F:  The Fate of a Regional Shopping Center Proposal

                      Chapter VIII: Suggested Readings

                      Subjects

                      - Citizen Participation

                        - Communication

                        - Internal Communication

                        - Public-Sector Decision-Making in a Democracy

                        - Game Theory

                        - Language

                        - Leadership for Public-Sector Problem-Solving and Decision-Making

                        - Negotiations

                        - CP Techniques

                        - Values

                        - Newsletter