Planning for Stronger Local Democracy

Planning for Stronger Local Democracy

July 19, 2012, 9:00 am-4:30 pm
Registration required ($30; $20 for students)

This session is a pre-conference learning exchange
before the Frontiers of Democracy conference

Tufts Medical School, 145 Harrison Ave., Boston, MA

We have learned a great deal about the strengths – and limitations – of public engagement as it is practiced today. We know how to involve large, diverse numbers of people in face-to-face and online settings that enable them to connect, learn, develop recommendations, and plan for action. These initiatives typically produce a range of significant outcomes, from personal transformation to policy change. But they take considerable amounts of energy and time, and in most cases, they do not seem to shift the long-term relationship between citizens and their public institutions. While they advance equity and distribute power in the context of a particular issue or decision, there may be limits to how equitable, inclusive, and powerful they can be.

With these lessons in mind, many communities are starting to envision more comprehensive, long-term, sustainable forms of public engagement. This full-day workshop, based on the NLC/DDC guide to Planning for Stronger Local Democracy, will use presentations, panels, small-group discussion, and a home movie to help participants think about:

  • The strengths and weaknesses of how public participation happens in their community/ies
  • The key questions they need to ask about the history and patterns of engagement in communities
  • The building blocks they might consider in their planning for stronger local democracy
  • What a number of national associations are doing to inspire, learn about, and support local democracy-strengthening work.

The Planning for Stronger Local Democracy guide is available for download on the NLC website.

Among the people who will be sharing their insights and updates at the workshop will be:

  • Carolyne Abdullah, Everyday Democracy
  • Ian Bautista, United Neighborhood Centers of America
  • Kristen Cambell, National Conference on Citizenship
  • Mike Huggins, National Civic League
  • Eric Gordon, Engagement Game Lab
  • Mark Linder, City of Cupertino and past chair, NLC Democratic Governance Panel
  • Linda Nguyen, Alliance for Children and Families

Agenda

Planning for Stronger Local Democracy

A pre-conference workshop at Frontiers of Democracy 2012
Tufts Medical School, 145 Harrison Street, Boston, MA
July 19th, 2012

9:00    Check in, introductions, goals for the day

9:15     What are your concerns, and what do you hope to learn, about local democracy?
(large-group discussion, featuring quick snippets from participants)
What have your experiences been with public participation?
What are your frustrations? What has been successful for you?

9:30     The best practices in public participation – and why they aren’t enough
(presentation with slides)

10:00    Hmm. Do you agree with this?
(small-group discussion)
Does this match your experiences with public participation? Why or why not?
What would you add to this analysis?

10:30    Break

10:45    What do the engagement practitioners and advisors say – do they agree with this?
(panel – Carolyne Abdullah of Everyday Democracy, Joe Peters of Ascentum)

11:30    What do you need to know about your community to start PSLD?
(small-group discussion, using questions from Part 1 of Planning for Stronger Local Democracy)

12:00    Lunch (will be provided)

12:45    Movie: “Recentering Democracy Around Citizens”
(followed by small-group discussion: What are your reactions to the movie? What do you disagree with? What would you add?)

1:00    What does that movie mean – and what is missing from it?
(panel – Mike Huggins of National Civic League, Eric Gordon of Engagement Game Lab, Kristen Cambell of National Conference on Citizenship)

1:45    What are the potential building blocks of PSLD?
(presentation with slides)

2:15    What are your building blocks?
(small-group discussion)
Does your community already have some building blocks in place?
Are there other building blocks that might be useful?
If you were to begin creating a long-term plan for your community, who would you work with and how would you get started?

3:00    Break

3:15    What are your building blocks?
(reportback from small-group discussion)

3:45    What are local governments, community foundations, and human service providers learning – and doing – about local democracy?
(panel – Mark Linder of City of Cupertino, Linda Nguyen of Alliance for Children and Families, Cynthia Gibson of Cynthesis Consulting)

4:30    Adjourn