Stakeholder and citizen participation

1. Stakeholder and citizen participation SUMP Technical Training Workshop Sofia, 4 May 2012

2. Why? • Participation • leads to more democracy • provokes ownership • increases efficiency and effectivity of policy choices • offers insight in target groups • narrows the gap between citizen and politician • increases transparency

3. Step – by – step • Define subject and scope • Define context conditions • Decide policy phase • Define goal and level • Identification and analysis of stakeholders • Choose event(s) • Make goals concrete and define result indicators • Setup action plan • Impact and process assessment

4. Step – by – step: Step 1 • What is the subject / scope of your process?

5. Step – by – step: Step 2 +3 • What is the participation – context? • Relationtootherplans (local, regional, national)? • Is there a tradition of participation in yourcity? • In-house expertise or external consultant? • Where does participation fit in consultationstructure? • In which policy phase we want citizenstoparticipate? • Planning, execution, evaluation

6. Step – by – step: Step 4 • Which level of participation do youaimfor? • Information • Consultation • Advise • Co-production • Co-decision “good information beats bad co-production”

7. Step – by – step: Step 5 • Identify individual and groups of stakeholders • Analyse • Expectations • Skills • Level of knowledge • Level of interest

8. Step – by – step: Step 6 • Choose appropriate participation-event • Structural or incidental • Direct or indirect • Interaction or no interaction • Examples • Citizen panel, jury • City or neighbourhood debates • Survey, focus groups • Action research • Advisory board

9. Step – by – step: Step 7 + 8 + 9 • Make goals concrete andfindresult indicators • Action and evaluation plan per event • Analysis of the output • Process • Impact

10. Citizen involvement: Hasselt • “Geknipt Mobiel” (approach tested in 15 municipalities) • Problem finding phase • Site visit • Photo’s / presentation • Discussion (joint fact finding) • Action plan • Shared responsibility (co-ownership) • Prioritise actions and make them concrete • Names and dates • the more concrete, the better • Try to make them SMART

11. Citizen involvement: Hasselt • Problem finding phase • Site visit • Starting with photo presentation • Makes things ‘real’ • Facilitates discussion • Discussion • Accessibility • Livability (quality of life) • Safety • Citizen participation

12. Shared responsibility: Hasselt

13. Involving children in Jette • Engaging children in designing a town square • 1st meeting • Learning to locate the school on a map of the city (game) • Talking about the direct environment of the school building • 2nd meeting • Walking in the neighbourhood finding out what they like and dislike in public spaces • Encourage and facilitate vision building on the public space (square in this case) • 3rd meeting • What is important in public spaces? • Showing the results to designers, press and policymakers

14. Involving children in Jette

15. Engaging the elderly • Action research • Problem finding • Action • Execution of the action

16. Engaging the elderly

17. Conclusions • Clear scope • Clear trajectory & objectives • Process management • Shared responsibility • Budget • Timeline • Communicate !

18. Exercise • Think of a concrete (group of) measure(s) you would like to involve the public for. • Design an ideal involvement plan. • Can this work in your city? Why (not)?

19. Presentation prepared by Jan Christiaens, Mobiel21 • icre@polisnetwork.eu