How can public engagement change in order to meet the challenges and conditions of 2017? There are a number of promising directions for new innovations. On all kinds of issues, people want more choices, more information and more of a say. Whether the topic is how schools should work, what should be in the local … Read more

How can public engagement evolve in order to meet the challenges and conditions of 2017? In my first post of this multi-blog series, I shared a list of promising directions for innovation in the field. Now, in Part 2 of the series, we’ll explore in more detail the first item on that list: making engagement more social … Read more

Thick engagement doesn’t scale, and thin engagement doesn’t stick. How can public engagement evolve in order to meet the challenges and conditions of 2017? My previous post argued for making engagement more social, versatile, convenient and fun. This time, I’ll explore the need to deal with the challenge of scale, so that people can be heard … Read more

We can give citizen voices more authority by blending two forms of engagement: deliberative democracy, in which people discuss issues and direct democracy, in which they make public decisions at the ballot box, but usually don’t discuss the issues first. How can public engagement evolve to meet the challenges and conditions of 2017? My previous post … Read more

Getting past “every-department-for-itself” engagement. How can public engagement evolve in order to meet the challenges and conditions of 2017? My previous post explored ways we can give engagement opportunities more authority, so that people are clear on how their voices will be heard and confident that it will make a difference. This time, I’ll address the … Read more

By doing a better job of measuring engagement, we can help clear up some of the confusion about what engagement means and why it is important. How can public engagement evolve in order to meet the needs and goals of citizens today? My previous post explored how public institutions may collaborate in their efforts to support … Read more