Slides for a workshop on the future of citizen participation in Europe, hosted by the Ministry for Citizen Participation of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany
Different Frontiers of Social Media War in Indonesia Elections 2024
Citizen Participation Workshop in Europe
1. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
IN THE UNITED STATES
Workshop: How to Make Citizen Participation
Relevant in European Regions
Stuttgart, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany
December 5, 2012
3. THE CONTEXT:
HOW HAVE CITIZENS* CHANGED?
More educated
More skeptical – different
attitudes toward authority
Have less time to spare
Better able to find
resources, allies, informati
on
* “citizens” =
residents, people
4. THREE MINUTES AT THE MICROPHONE
Retrieved from Cincinnati.com, July 27, 2012
5. SUCCESSFUL TACTIC: PROACTIVE RECRUITMENT
Map community networks;
Involve leaders of those networks;
„Who is least
likely to
participate?‟
Use online as
well as f2f
connections;
Follow up!
6. SUCCESSFUL TACTIC: SMALL-GROUP PROCESSES
No more than 12 people per group;
Facilitator who is impartial (doesn‟t give
opinions);
Start with people
describing their
experiences;
Lay out options;
Help people plan
for action.
7. SUCCESSFUL TACTIC: FRAMING AN ISSUE
Give people the information they need, in ways
they can use it
Lays out several options or views (including
ones you don‟t agree with)
Trust them
to make good
decisions
11. SUCCESSFUL TACTIC: ONLINE TOOLS
Particularly good for:
Providing background information
Data gathering by citizens
Generating and
ranking ideas
Helping people
visualize options
Maintaining
connections
over time
12. STRENGTHS OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
Making policy decisions, plans, budgets
Catalyzing citizen action
Building trust, fostering new leadership
Connections = disaster preparedness
Attachment = economic vitality
13. LIMITATIONS OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION (AS
WE PRACTICE IT TODAY)
Lots of work for temporary gain
Inefficient – every organization on its own
Community moves back to „politics as usual‟
„Engagers‟ set the agenda, not the „engaged‟
Limited impact on equity
Laws on participation out
of step with practices
14. WHAT IS CIVIC INFRASTRUCTURE?
The regular
opportunities, activities, and arenas
that allow people to connect with
each other, solve problems, make
decisions, and be part of a
community.
15. NEW MODEL ORDINANCE ON PUBLIC
PARTICIPATION
Available at www.deliberative-democracy.net
Developed as a collaboration of:
16.
17. “PORTSMOUTH LISTENS”
PORTSMOUTH, NH
Ongoing process since 2000
Several hundred participants each time
Addressed a number of major policy
decisions: bullying in schools, school
redistricting, city‟s master plan, balancing city
budget, whether to build new middle school
18. JANE ADDAMS SCHOOL FOR DEMOCRACY
WEST SIDE OF ST. PAUL, MN
50-200 people in “neighborhood learning
circles” every month since 1998
Involves recent Hmong, Latino, Somali
immigrants
Young people involved in circles and other
activities
Cultural exchanges - food, crafts, storytelling
Has resulted in new
projects, initiatives,
festivals, and change
in INS policy
19. PARTICIPATORY BUDGETING IN BRAZILIAN CITIES
Commitment from gov‟t to adopt budget;
Wide range of ways to be involved;
A carnival
atmosphere;
Started small,
now huge –
60,000+ people
24. Why build stronger civic
infrastructure?
1. Make engagement easier, more efficient
2. Build trust
3. Give residents more control of the agenda
4. Better address inequities
5. Increase community attachment and
economic growth
6. Increase residents’ sense of legitimacy and
“public happiness”
Editor's Notes
Sometimes this means action by citizens that is seeded by gov’t with small grants
Refer to Using Online Tools guide
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Rio Grande do Sol - http://blogs.worldbank.org/publicsphere/node/5998