Extension > Community > Civic Engagement > Engage citizens in decisions > Topics and offerings
Topics and offerings
Through consultation from an Extension educator, we can help communities make decisions using public participation strategies. Our consultation helps local designers consider all of the elements described below.
Tools for Public Participation Strategists
Tricks of the trade that engage the public and move groups to action
In the complicated world of analyzing and organizing stakeholders, you need the right tools for the job. In these workshops, we'll pass along tools that are helpful for:
- Managing effective public meetings
- Identifying stakeholders and analyzing their influence and roles
- Creating, managing, and evaluating ideas
- Making decisions using public involvement
- Managing conflicts arising from differences of opinion.
- Facilitating public dialog
Designing Participation Processes
The what, why, who, how, when, and where of public participation
- What are the core values necessary for engaging the public in decision-making?
- What methods are effective in bringing the public to the table?
- In this workshop, we will examine the nature of public participation strategies and identify what makes a strategy successful. This workshop is great for groups and for individuals who want to plan how they will work with their stakeholders.
Public Participation Process in Groups and Teams
How can people come together to make decisions successfully?
We'll look at ways that advisory councils, committees, and advocacy groups can be structured so they communicate well with each other and perform effectively. The nature of groups, the stages of groups, and models for group management will be discussed. This training is useful for newly-formed groups that want to perform more effectively or want to re-examine their work together.
Leadership and Policy Change
How leadership changes in a shared-power world
John Bryson and Barbara Crosby, Ph.D., have noted that the effect of a shared-power world is that even people in positions of power feel frustrated and impotent. Engaging stakeholders changes the nature of leadership. These workshops will help leaders clarify their leadership styles, and examine how leadership changes in forums where power is shared. We will discuss processes leaders can use to navigate the policy cycle by engaging the public and building coalitions.
