Loading...

    • Map Your Public Engagement Process

      Public engagement is a non-linear and messy process as multiple stakeholders are consulted, input is reviewed and integrated, and relationships between the public and government are built over time. There is no perfect roadmap to public engagement, but there are foundational planning pieces that can help determine your success.

      This pre-screen questionnaire will help you explore all the things you need to consider and provides useful exercises to bring a team of people into alignment.

      If you would like to skip the screening exercise and see all activities, click here.

    • Map Your Public Engagement Process

      Based on how you answer the next few questions we will recommend a series of activities you may complete with your public engagement planning team. This is not an exhaustive list, but rather a series of prompts for an MVP: minimum viable process.

    • Getting Started

      Public engagement happens at the speed of trust. So don’t rush it. Move slow and deliberately. Most importantly, understand what you already have, so you’re better able to understand what you need. What are you aiming to achieve and how will you know when you get there? Do you understand who your target audiences and partners are and what they want out of the process? Do you have an understanding of other similar efforts in the community? Answers to these questions will be a good start.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_1_WhyPublicEngagement

      You’re trying to engage the public in some policy, process, or issue. Can you state your purpose in one sentence?

      For example, you might be aiming to increase voter turnout in local elections or improve environmental sustainability practices throughout the city.

      Activity Icon_1_WhyPublicEngagement

      Why Public Engagement?

      You’re trying to engage the public in some policy, process, or issue. Can you state your purpose in one sentence?

      Why Public Engagement?

      Current Phase Icon

      Getting Started

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      10 minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      You’re trying to engage the public in some policy, process, or issue. Can you state your purpose in one sentence?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Determining your reasons for public engagement informs the messaging of your project, ensures team members are on the same page, and simplifies decision-making.

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Whiteboard/poster-board and markers and/or digitally shared notes.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      Copy the following sentence and make sure to leave space for the bolded sections:

      We are seeking to (state program goals). We are engaging (name of community or group), because (reason for engagement).

      Here are some examples:

      We are seeking to... create better public housing policy in Boston. We are engaging... public housing residents, as well as abutters, in the Roxbury neighborhood because... we need to hear from as many voices as possible before creating policy.

      We are seeking... to install urban sensors in downtown Houston. We are engaging... store owners and residents in the downtown area because... we want to understand privacy concerns and gaps in service delivery.

      As a group, discuss each blank in the above sentence separately in order to create a compelling statement of purpose. Your statement should be concise and no longer than 2-3 sentences.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Be mindful of constraints, i.e. limited budget and time. You might want to engage the whole city, but realistically only have enough time and resources to focus on a single neighborhood.

      • Be specific about your goals and target audiences.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      The Eight-Word Mission Statement
      This article explains the value of a clear, concise mission statement for social and civic organizations, and explains how to think through the creation of one.

    • Map Image
      Activity icon_2_Outcomes

      Your success will depend on whether or not you reach your goals. Can you clearly articulate deliverables and outcomes?

      A helpful hint is that effective desired outcomes are always nouns. SMART is a helpful acronym to keep in mind as well for goals that are: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound. Rather than considering broad goals such as, “greater participation in public life”, consider specific outcomes such as “a 20% increase in voter registration” or “creation of a working group.”

      Activity icon_2_Outcomes

      Outcomes

      Your success will depend on whether or not you reach your goals. Can you clearly articulate deliverables and outcomes?

      Outcomes

      Current Phase Icon

      Getting Started

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      40 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Your success will depend on whether or not you reach your goals. Can you clearly articulate deliverables and outcomes?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      The more specific you can be about outcomes, the easier they are to assess. Good examples include concrete numbers and figures, such as “20% increase in voter registration” or “the establishment of four peer learning groups,” as opposed to vague descriptions, like “greater public participation.”

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Writing surface, marker, sticker dots or sticky notes, or digitally shared notes.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      Start with the following statement: "By the end of the project, we will have [blank] "

      Each team member should take 5 minutes to individually list all possible desired outcomes on sticky notes (using the example sentence as a guide). One idea, one note. Try to come up with at least 5 each. In this case, more is more. Post all of the ideas in a central place. It’s okay to have multiple goals. Desired outcomes can include:

      • % increase in something
      • Policy ideas
      • Projects,
      • Volunteer database
      • A shared understanding of something specific
      • An agreement
      • A tool or set of tools
      • Long-term partners
      • Revised standards
      • A formed network

      As a group, read aloud all the ideas and cluster them by themes. For example, you might generate multiple ideas related to forming an accountability structure such as a working group or coalition and can group those accordingly.

      Once the group has discussed all the ideas, determine the top 5 and separate them on your surface. You can rank order them if desirable.

      Finally, document all the desired outcomes for future reference.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Be specific with your desired outcome. Simply writing “advisory board” is not enough information. How many people, and from what kind of backgrounds, should be on your desired advisory board? If one of your goals is to create a tool, don’t stop with just the tool. Who will create the tool? Who will maintain it?

      • If you don’t want to prioritize the outcomes via sticker voting, you can try using a decision matrix.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Project Management for Dummies Cheat Sheet
      This “For Dummies” cheat-sheet provides an overview of basic project management, addressing how to justify a project, schedule realistic, specific milestones, and secure accountability from team members and stakeholders.

      Eight Outcome Models
      This is an overview of tools, models, and methodologies for outcome-based planning and decision-making, briefly summarizing each approach, its strengths, and where each is particularly well-suited. By the Harvard Family Research Project.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_3_Stakeholder Personas

      Can you name the various stakeholders, their motivations, and capacities for partnership?

      Your stakeholders include anyone who influences your public engagement or is affected by its outcomes. If your team consists of people from multiple departments, does everyone understand the different priorities? If your team involves external organizations, is there clarity about what each organization seeks to gain from the process?

      Activity Icon_3_Stakeholder Personas

      Stakeholder Personas

      Can you name the various stakeholders, their motivations, and capacities for partnership?

      Stakeholder Personas

      Current Phase Icon

      Getting Started

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      45 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Can you name the various stakeholders, their motivations, and capacities for partnership?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Specifically describing your stakeholders and understanding their needs throughout the project helps ensure your decision-making remains human-centered. Other benefits include easier communications planning and partnership growth.

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Whiteboard/posterboard, sticky notes, and/or digitally shared notes.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      Each team member should take 5 minutes to individually list stakeholders. One idea, one note. Try to come up with at least 5 each. In this case, more is more. Stakeholders might include:

      • Government employee
      • Community activist
      • Real estate developer
      • Teen
      • Single mother of three

      Place stickies on a large, common surface. Cluster them into categories. For example, “parents, business interest, etc.”

      Break into groups of two or three. Each group should pick a stakeholder from the list and write it down on the top of a large flip-chart sheet or whiteboard. Then, discuss and write down the following attributes of your stakeholder on the flip-chart.

      • Name, occupation, age
      • Interests, hobbies
      • Level of current engagement: high, medium, low
      • What their interest might be in your process.
      • Public engagement habits
      • A short summary of motivations, needs, resources

      When finished, draw a picture of your character and give them a name.

      Share the personas you’ve created with your team.

      Keep these personas posted in your workspace or in a readily-accessible space for future reference.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Be mindful not to use disrespectful stereotypes.

      • Conducting further research can help inform your assumptions. You can read about potential stakeholders online, conduct preliminary 1:1 meetings, and ask other colleagues about their experiences of outreach and collaboration with stakeholders.

      • Revisit and update the user personas throughout your project planning and design process.
      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Personas
      The US Government’s official Usability Guide has a succinct introduction to using personas in the planning process, including different formats and a sample persona developed for a government agency.

      Persona Creation and Usage Toolkit
      George Olsen’s Toolkit is a thorough resource for the creation of personas, outlining valuable biographic/psychographic information, relationships, and characteristics that make personas more useful.

      Smaply Persona Templates
      Smaply sells persona editor/user-experience-design software, but their website also offers free templates for workshopping the process on paper.

      Stakeholder Analysis: Winning Support for Your Projects
      This article provides an overview for understanding who your stakeholders are, and how to secure support for your projects by analyzing both their level of influence and interest in your work.

      Making Sense of Stakeholder Mapping
      Murray-Webster and Simon offer a slightly more nuanced approach for mapping stakeholder analysis, with axes for influence, interest, and attitude towards your project, and profiles for different hypothetical stakeholders.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_4_Field Scan

      Do you know about other public engagement efforts that have used similar tactics or have addressed the same issue or community?

      For instance, if you are planning to use an online dialogue tool, make sure to adequately research options. Or if you are engaging the public on issues of climate adaptation, look into similar efforts in other cities.

      Activity Icon_4_Field Scan

      Field Scan

      Do you know about other public engagement efforts that have used similar tactics or have addressed the same issue or community?

      Field Scan

      Current Phase Icon

      Getting Started

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      30 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Do you know about other public engagement efforts that have used similar tactics or have addressed the same issue or community?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      When conducting a field scan, you can discover potential partners, learn from previous successes and failures, and avoid redundancy in public engagement efforts. For example, if you are planning to use an online dialogue tool, have you compared examples from other cities?

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Writing surface, internet-enabled computers for each person, and markers or digitally shared notes.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      This activity can also be completed over a long period of time, either in a focused multi-day research sprint or over the course of several weeks. A brief, 30 minute version of the activity, is listed below.

      Create a table with the following column labels: date range, problem, engagement solution, dept/orgs involved, how was success defined?, was it successful?, additional comments.

      For ten minutes, each participant searches online for examples of similar public engagement efforts, tools, approaches, and populations. Ideally, in a shared document or using sticky notes, each person should fill out the table, with each row pertaining to one case study.

      Discuss the examples as a group by comparing their similarities and differences. Write down any new approaches and initiatives for your public engagement project based on the examples and group discussion.

      After this activity, consider continuing to research similar public engagement efforts through online searches and conversations with stakeholders. Keep track of what you find in the table.
      Continue to review this database with your team during the early stages of your public engagement planning process.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • If it’s not too resource intensive, reach out to some of the projects you are cataloging to learn from their failures and wins.

      • If possible, keep track of contact information from your examples. These contacts may help you if you encounter questions about implementation or outreach. Research can take many forms. You might conduct your field scan through searching the internet, interviewing stakeholders, reading policy briefs, creating surveys, etc.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Search and Synthesis
      This page briefly overviews a cyclical model for managing knowledge and research, and offers guidelines for focusing research and making it more relevant to a project’s goals. By the NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub

      Equipt to Innovate Field Guide
      Living Cities’ guide lays out a series of high-level markers/outcomes that serve to indicate if a city is “Equipt to Innovate” or is in the process of innovation.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_5_Communication Channels

      Do you know the best ways to reach the people you’re trying to engage and the barriers they may face for engagement?

      Consider the popularity of using social media, neighborhood listservs, and physical locations like cafes and barbershops. Don’t forget to take into account how social divisions affect the interactions in these spaces and accessibility to them.

      Activity Icon_5_Communication Channels

      Communication Channels

      Do you know the best ways to reach the people you’re trying to engage and the barriers they may face for engagement?

      Communication Channels

      Current Phase Icon

      Getting Started

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      40 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Do you know the best ways to reach the people you’re trying to engage and the barriers they may face for engagement?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Exchanging information is only useful if it’s through accessible means. This activity helps you articulate in-person and digital channels where your stakeholders congregate. Some channels are one-way (such as receiving a newsletter) while others are bi-directional (such as a town hall forum). It also emphasizes how marginalized voices can better be heard when there is acknowledgement of systemic barriers.

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Writing surface and marker or digitally shared notes.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      Create a table on a whiteboard or shared digital document with the five columns. Label the first column communication channels. Then label each additional column with a stakeholder you came up with in the Stakeholder Personas exercise. If you didn't do that exercise, feel free to use sample stakeholder categories such as youth, senior citizens, environmental science professionals, the homeless population, etc. Then add the following rows, labeling each as follows: community organizations, local leaders, broadcast media, social media, physical spaces.

      As a group, list out the specific ways the stakeholders might be sharing and receiving information through each row’s communication category. If using a whiteboard, create one sticky note for each idea. Here are some examples of communication channels based on the category:

      Community Organizations
      Neighborhood associations, community development corporations, advocacy groups, etc.

      Local Leaders
      Church leaders, youth program managers, city councillors, etc.

      Broadcast Media
      Local TV, radio, newspapers, etc.

      Social Media
      Locally based Twitter accounts, specific hashtags, Facebook, Snapchat, or platforms like NextDoor.

      Physical Spaces
      Barber shops, cafes, libraries, churches, schools, front porches, etc.

      Using a different color sticky notes or font, list barriers that each stakeholder group faces when trying to communicate. For example, some personal barriers such as shyness, racism, sexism, ageism, classism, lack of social capital, as well as access to technology, media, or transportation.

      Part II

      Now that you understand how stakeholders are communicating, you’re ready to brainstorm ways of reaching them. Take turns role-playing the stakeholder personas and their needs and take notes on the statements. Each person introduce him or herself as the stakeholder persona with this prompt:

      I am (stakeholder persona). I currently get information from (relevant communication channels). In the future I would like to communicate on public matters through (relevant communication channels).

      Pause between each role-play and take notes on the gaps and opportunities for communicating with stakeholders.

      Create a new table on a whiteboard or shared digital document. Draw three columns and label them as follows: "Stakeholder", "Face-to-face", and "Online". Draw four rows and assign a row to each of the four stakeholders you used in part one of this exercise.

      Based on your role play, document the channels you have chosen to reach each of your stakeholder personas. Separate them by face-to-face and online. For hybrid approaches, place the idea in both categories.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Adjust the number of columns to represent the stakeholders you are engaging, as needed.

      • Consult with stakeholders to understand where they receive and exchange information.

      • Use approachable, jargon-free language in your communications.
      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Social Media
      This page defines social media in the most broad, basic terms and introduces the loose categories that comprise it. By The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub.

      Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation (SBAR)
      Introduces the SBAR model for soliciting feedback, by creating a standardized framework for conversations about a project. By The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub.

      Communications and Engagement Plan
      Like the above “Social Media” resource, this page provides a broad, basic introduction to the concept of a Communications and Engagement Plan, and some basic examples for what such a plan might entail. By The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub

      Visioning Outcomes in Community Engagement (VOiCE)
      A web-based software that assists individuals, organizations and partnerships to design and deliver effective community engagement. It enables all users to employ a common system for analyzing, planning, monitoring, evaluating and recording their community engagement. By The Scottish Community Development Centre

    • Project Planning

      Now that you know the why (purpose), what (desired outcomes), and who (stakeholders) as well as the context (field scan), you can flesh out the where, when, and how of your public engagement.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_6_Face to Face Deliberation

      Will your project include in-person gatherings such as facilitated workshops or town hall meetings?

      Face-to-face interactions are very important for creating and maintaining relationships.

      Activity Icon_6_Face to Face Deliberation

      Face-to-Face Deliberation

      Will your project include in-person gatherings such as facilitated workshops or town hall meetings?

      Face-to-Face Deliberation

      Current Phase Icon

      Project Planning

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      20 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Will your project include in-person gatherings such as facilitated workshops or town hall meetings?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Face-to-face interactions facilitate learning, connection, and dialogue. Sharing space, breaking bread, eye contact, laughing and even arguing are aspects of human connection that are difficult to reproduce in digital environments. While digital campaigns often enable a broader audience reach and faster connections, face-to-face methods, such as town hall meetings, community workshops, and ambassador programs, allow for deeper and more meaningful interactions.

      SAMPLE USE CASE

      Marketplace Nights

      Marketplace Nights is a ritualized structure for neighborhood exchange circles facilitated by Bill Trayvnor. Participants can make offers, requests, or announcements to broker exchanges. Advice, gifts, and favors are frequently shared. Popular, regular marketplace nights have been implemented in neighborhoods in Akron, Chicago, Tampa, Boston, Birmingham AL, Washington DC and have seen the exchange of thousands of dollars worth of materials, information, advice, tips, wisdom and favors.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      First create a pros and cons list for face-to-face deliberation modalities of engagement. You will want to list as many benefits and challenges as you can think of. You might want to create a two column table and have your team actively brainstorm/contribute to the table during a set time limit. Here are some examples:

      Pros: increased ease of relationship and trust building, improved quality of conversations through ease of facilitation and conversation-building, accessible to people with less access to technology.

      Cons: need for translators, need for increased support such as childcare and meals, potential costs of training facilitators.

      After you have your list, compare the pros and cons of Face-to-Face Deliberation in relation to other engagement modalities.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Examine existing programs, such as a youth corps, that you can leverage or expand upon.
      • If you’re working with a population where there might have been a particularly contentious history, consider the power of face-to-face interactions for rebuilding trust.
      • If you are asking for deep face-to-face involvement, such as through a series of focus group, look into offering stipends, food or donated gift cards.
      • Be cognizant of challenges such as: language barriers, work schedule conflicts, and dominant personalities.
      • These facilitations can require more time, infrastructure and resources.
      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Knowledge Cafe
      A sample activity for face-to-face deliberation among a group, lasting 90-120 minutes and oriented around a single open-ended question, designed to introduce a group to their collective thinking about an issue. By The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub

      Communities of Practice
      Introduces the concept of Communities of Practice, and suggests considerations for creating such a community that can create and share knowledge across its members. By The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_7_Online Dialogue

      Do you use technology for meaningful online conversations?

      This includes appropriation of existing platforms like Facebook or Snapchat, adopting civic technology tools or even making a new tool.

      Activity Icon_7_Online Dialogue

      Online Dialogue

      Do you use technology for meaningful online conversations?

      Online Dialogue

      Current Phase Icon

      Project Planning

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      20 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Do you use technology for meaningful online conversations?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Online environments have opened up several new, and unexpected avenues for deliberative process. While it is possible to see deliberative give and take within some popular online spaces, from Facebook to the Huffington Post, these spaces often quickly devolve into empty talk, and for this reason are rarely adopted by government as official spaces of deliberation. City governments can invest in digital engagement strategies that allow for meaningful conversations to occur and creative ideas to emerge. These tactics include virtual townhalls, Twitter chats, and social media campaigns as well as polls.

      SAMPLE USE CASE

      Weibo

      From Website to Weibo

      The 2010 elections in Alhambra — a primarily immigrant Los Angeles suburb, were canceled after no challengers entered the race. The first English coverage came from Alhambra Source, a new trilingual site, informed by research, on how local news can increase civic engagement across ethno-linguistic boundaries. Since then, more than 90 community contributors who speak 10 languages have written hundreds of articles. Alhambra Source is the winner of three Inter-Ethnic Press awards and has generated other projects including a groundbreaking Weibo (Chinese Twitter) initiative with the Alhambra Police Department. A multi-level evaluation of the site’s impact is underway. Read more here.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      First create a pros and cons list for online deliberation modalities of engagement. You will want to list as many benefits and challenges as you can think of. You might want to create a two column table and have your team actively brainstorm/contribute to the table during a set time limit. Here are some examples:

      Pros: People can participate at their convenience, those who do not normally participate can get involved- such as younger populations, online participation could be easier to document and archive.

      Cons: Inaccessible to people with less digital literacy and access to technology, could involve increased moderation needs, might generate more data than there is capacity to interpret.

      Compare the pros and cons of online dialogue in relation to other engagement modalities.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Many online tools often require moderation and maintenance.

      • One aspect of trust-building includes strong feedback loops. Try to respond to online input in a timely manner.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      NextDoor
      Next Door is a social network for neighborhoods to share local announcements and requests.

      Neighborland
      A suite of online and offline engagement tools

      Co-Urbanize
      An online deliberation game focused on community planning

      Community PlanIt
      Community Plan It is an online deliberation game focused on community planning. Over the course of a month, participants answer trivia and discussion questions while communicating through a forum to debate planning ideas and compete for prizes.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_8_Design Thinking

      Have you considered including design-thinking exercises in your process?

      Design-thinking methods can include issue-specific hackathons, prototyping sessions, and idea workshops.

      Activity Icon_8_Design Thinking

      Design-Thinking

      Have you considered including design-thinking exercises in your process?

      Design-Thinking

      Current Phase Icon

      Project Planning

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      20 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Have you considered including design-thinking exercises in your process?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Instead of talking about an issue, a design-thinking approach focuses on group problem solving and solution identification through experimentation and testing. Design-thinking approaches typically involve creative techniques such as drawing and performing, and emphasize creative process over outcomes. Cities can plan a variety of creative engagement activities that encourage ideation, such as design charrettes, game play, art festivals, and hackathons or design days.

      SAMPLE USE CASE

      Participatory Budgeting Project

      The Participatory Budgeting Project (PBP) is a non-profit organization that empowers people to decide together how to spend public money, across the US and Canada. Through programs that PBP has launched and supported, 60,000 people have directly decided how to spend $80 million on more than 600 community projects in 10 cities. Participants create budget delegates who are tasked with researching community needs and submitting project proposals for residents to vote on. Participatory budgeting allocates funds for capital projects such as bike repair stations, wifi spots, bike lanes, and street lighting repairs. In 25 years of global practice, Participatory Budgeting has proven highly effective at engaging these underrepresented communities. This work is recognized by The White House as a model for open government, and by the Brown Democracy Medal as the best practical innovation advancing democracy around the world.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      First create a pros and cons list for design-thinking modalities of engagement. You will want to list as many benefits and challenges as you can think of. You might want to create a two column table and have your team actively brainstorm/contribute to the table during a set time limit. Here are some examples:

      Pros: Creative ideas can be generated, people can have more fun through this interactive approach, interdisciplinary collaboration can be occur.

      Cons: Participants might be confused by the activities, some participants might want more traditional and straightforward means of participation, supplies might be costly.

      Compare the pros and cons of Design Thinking in relation to other engagement modalities.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Practice facilitating design-thinking activities ahead of time.

      • Keep track of time for rapid brainstorming and prototyping activities to embrace the creative constraints that time limitations provide.

      • Enlist volunteers who understand the design-thinking approach who can answer questions and support participants.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Ideas Generation
      An introduction to brainstorming ideas in a group and testing the feasibility of these ideas by The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub.

      Visioning Event
      This page offers a “Visioning Event” tool as a way to bring stakeholders into the planning process at an intermediate stage, to evaluate the plan and insights gleaned from research and analysis. By The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub

      Somerville By Design
      This page outlines SBD’s model for participatory urban planning, explaining the philosophy at its root and the surface-level steps for producing a collaborative vision for a city plan.

      Market Street Prototyping Festival
      Over the course of a weekend, San Francisco’s annual Prototyping Festival transforms public and community spaces centered on Market Street into experimental “zones” where design happens collaboratively out in the open.

      DiscoTechs
      DiscoTechs has organized city-by-city events designed to inform the general public about the emerging role of technology in the creation of new co-ops/the co-operative economy.

      Park(ing) Day
      An organized annual event for creating tiny, temporary parks in metered parking spaces as a way to change thinking about public beautification and the use of public space.

      Design Method Toolkit
      A large catalogue of Design/Research methodologies, organized according to stage in the design process, methodological goal, and amount of time to complete.

      Human-Centered Design Toolkit
      IDEO’s Human-Centered Design Toolkit is an introduction to “Human-Centered Design” and catalogue of methodologies, and includes case studies demonstrating real-world implementation of such an approach.

      Method Cards
      18F offers a free deck of Design/Research methods that are commonly used in modern agile development, designed in a way that is meant to be friendly to less-experienced or new researchers.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_9_Storytelling

      Do you have creative outputs in your process, such as visual art or storytelling?

      From murals made with data to online testimonials, there are many opportunities to promote creative storytelling.

      Activity Icon_9_Storytelling

      Creative Storytelling

      Do you have creative outputs in your process, such as visual art or storytelling?

      Creative Storytelling

      Current Phase Icon

      Project Planning

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      20 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Do you have creative outputs in your process, such as visual art or storytelling?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Collecting and amplifying existing stories reasserts the value of local knowledge. An initial step in building trust and helping people feel heard is listening to their stories. Even in instances where some stories are very simple and straightforward, the act of storytelling takes on it’s own value as an empowering action. Storytelling is an opportunity to share perspectives, learn from different viewpoints, and consider a diversity of experiences. Whether it’s in the context of brainstorming new solutions or sharing painful experiences - stories have the power to transform relationships. Storytelling can be facilitated both in-person and online and can occur through many visual, oral, or even trans-media formats.

      SAMPLE USE CASE

      Urban Storytellers

      Your Story Goes Here is an online digital media teaching kit designed to help people craft, share, publish and ultimately discuss their stories about cities, places and people - building confidence and capacity for non-professional citizen planners. Through both physical and digital means, the kit is designed to highlight the importance of civic engagement in urban planning. This storytelling tool is intended for use by communities, organizations or schools with no age or experience limits in a 2-day workshop. The framework takes participants through an Urban Planning 101 session; introduces the concept of physical and critical site audits; teaches fundamentals of effective storytelling through language, keywords, digital audio, video, animation or stills; and demonstrates open digital platforms for publishing stories -- all meant to increase the capacity of citizens to identify the importance of civic activism in urban planning and to become active citizens themselves.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      Create a pros and cons list for storytelling modalities of engagement. List as many benefits and challenges as you can think of. Examples include:

      Pros: people can feel more connected to each other by empathizing with one another’s stories, a particular cause or issue might gain more traction the more stakeholders share their personal connections to it, stakeholder stories can source novel ideas and approaches

      Cons: stakeholders who are shy or wary of public attention might not participate, vulnerable populations might not feel safe in sharing their stories, collecting and possibly editing stories might be time intensive.

      Compare the pros and cons of storytelling in relation to other engagement modalities.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Sharing and hearing the stories of disenfranchised communities is a sensitive topic. In places and populations where there is a historical lack of trust in government, consider peer-to-peer story collecting and telling initiatives.

      • Reflect on technologically sustainable modes of story collecting and sharing. If you are recording your stories and sharing them online, consider site maintenance needs and responsibilities.

      • How can social media amplify your story campaign? Consider creating a hashtag to accompany your project.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Storytelling
      A basic introduction to Storytelling as a practice in Design/Research by The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub.

      Storyboarding
      A brief explanation of the value of storyboarding in a planning process by The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub.

      StoryCorps
      By enabling people to tell and record stories, Storycorps enlists the activity of storytelling (not the content of the stories) to engage publics. A small percentage of these stories are broadcast on National Public Radio, but Storycorps maintains a much larger archive of stories.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_10_Games and Play

      Does your public engagement plan include playful activities or games to enhance your public engagement?

      Play can provide meaningful encounters and opportunities to learn. It is not only for youth, but youth tend to be most interested at first.

      Activity Icon_10_Games and Play

      Games and Play

      Does your public engagement plan include playful activities or games to enhance your public engagement?

      Games and Play

      Current Phase Icon

      Project Planning

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      20 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Does your public engagement plan include playful activities or games to enhance your public engagement?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Play is any activity where the means are more valuable than the ends. It is not about motivating or incentivizing people to do things, but rather about providing the space for learning and interaction. Play can be encouraged through games, interactive displays, meme-inspired social media campaigns, among other tactics.

      SAMPLE USE CASE

      Race To The White House
      Race to the White House adopts the approach of using GPS coordinates for a treasure-hunt- -inspired game for civic learning. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the geocache (container) hidden at that location. Through a program developed by Global Kids Inc., participants engaged in a summer-long process of finding, placing, and interacting through the geocaching network, all while discussing electoral topics. This case study can offer pictures, examples, and a theoretical grounding for how civic learning can be uprooted from books and digital screens for learners today.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      First create a pros and cons list for playful modalities of engagement. You will want to list as many benefits and challenges as you can think of. You might want to create a two column table and have your team actively brainstorm/contribute to the table during a set time limit. Examples include:

      Pros: participants might feel inspired and refreshed by innovative approaches to engagement, play can transcend language or literacy boundaries, play encourage new ways of thinking.

      Cons: some rules might be more complicated for others to understand or participants might feel that a public topic is not being taken seriously enough.

      Compare the pros and cons of Play in relation to other engagement modalities.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Games or interactive installations often succeed through facilitation
      • Commissioning games to be designed for your engagement could be costly
      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Boston Coastline: Future Past
      This interactive art performance that entailed walking through the City of Boston to imagine how climate change will impact the City’s social and physical landscape.

      Playful Engagement Leaderboard
      This blog post by PlaceMatters explains playful alternatives to typical planning processes and obstacles.

      Games for Change
      Games for Change promotes the use of games and play as a force for social change, both through curating provocative titles and through outreach in the gaming industry and community.

      The Art of Changing a City
      A two-term mayor of Bogotá, describes his use of humor, play, and seemingly small measures to create larger change.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_11_Data: Literacy, Visualization, and Sensors

      If you have lots of data, have you considered creating data visualizations to make it legible?

      Getting data out of spreadsheets into pictures or stories can be very impactful and can be leveraged for feedback loops.

      Activity Icon_11_Data: Literacy, Visualization, and Sensors

      Data: Literacy, Visualization, and Sensors

      If you have lots of data, have you considered creating data visualizations to make it legible?

      Data: Literacy, Visualization, and Sensors

      Current Phase Icon

      Project Planning

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      20 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      If you have lots of data, have you considered creating data visualizations to make it legible?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      In the age of big data and the Internet of Things (IoT), there is a never-ending stream of information. Government can support an informed citizenry as an aggregator and dispenser of data. For instance, governments can help people deploy sensors for citizen science and hacking projects by sharing data sets. The technology market invests in creating intuitive uses of products through studying user needs, preferences, and behavior. Government will benefit from a similar investment in understanding information architecture and flow so that citizens have access to service delivery information and participatory decision-making.

      SAMPLE USE CASE

      City Digits: Local Lotto

      City Digits: Local Lotto (citydigits.org) is a high school math class and technology platform, developed by interactive designers and math education researchers from MIT and Brooklyn College, in which students investigate the social implications of state lotteries by interviewing their neighbors, analyzing citywide data, and using their findings to weigh the inequalities and benefits of the system. The curriculum, which helps students develop data literacy as a means to become engaged members of their communities, was piloted at a Brooklyn high school in 2013. A curriculum based around informal banking was deployed in Fall 2014.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      First create a pros and cons list for data literacy modalities of engagement. You will want to list as many benefits and challenges as you can think of. You might want to create a two column table and have your team actively brainstorm/contribute to the table during a set time limit. Here are some examples:

      Pros: appealing to a wider audience through simplified information, increased shareability of data through outputs like infographics, investment in longer-term participation through supporting literacy growth.

      Cons: reliance on technology for storing or retrieving data, determining ethical standards for handling sensitive data, possibly relying on experts to simplify complex ideas.

      Compare the pros and cons of Data Literacy in relation to other engagement modalities.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Apply universal usability standards to make your content accessible to people with disabilities.

      • Consider presenting the same data set in multiple formats, such as videos, podcasts, infographics, etc. to accommodate different learning styles.

      • Presenting data and interpreting it are two different but intertwined topics for investment. First, your data must be accessible and legible; second, people must know how to apply it. Sharing datasets is not enough.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Data Therapy
      Researcher Rahul Bhargava supports community organizations in data visualization and presentation through workshops, webinars, and writing for creative data stories.

      Making the numbers meaningful for quality improvement, Box Plot, Frequency Plots
      The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub summarizes basic models for plotting statistical information

      Open Data Policies
      The National League of Cities’ official report on Open Data Policies offers a framework for implementing such policies, making data available through public portals, and making data “useful”.

      NYC Open Data
      via Socrata NYC’s Public data portal, containing datasets categorized by agency, social sector, data type, and more.

      Data.Gov
      The federal public portal for datasets includes available federal data, but also aggregates datasets from city, county, and state databases in the network.

      Array of Things
      The City of Chicago has launched an initiative of technologies and programs to provide real-time, location-based data about the city’s environment, infrastructure and activity to researchers and the public. It encourages collaborations between experts, researchers, and laypeople to take specific actions to address urban issues like transportation and climate change.

      CDC Database of Interventions
      The CDC Community Health Improvement Navigator (CHI Navigator) Database of Interventions is a tool that helps you identify interventions that work in four action areas—socioeconomic factors, physical environment, health behaviors, and clinical care. It provides leaders and stakeholders with options to consider when making decisions about how to invest in their community and address its health needs.

    • Putting it All Together

      A centralized roadmap helps you see the bigger picture and re-route when necessary. Taking some time to put all of your public engagement planning pieces together will help you notice any gaps, keep you on track toward your larger goals, and share your story.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_12_Project Mapping

      Have you created a logic model, or any other project planning and evaluation tool?

      Public engagement outcomes are typically long-term. It’s important to spell out achievable goals in the short term. Do you have a clear idea of what those are? Do you have something written down that can clearly communicate to someone unfamiliar with the project what you’re trying to do?

      Activity Icon_12_Project Mapping

      Project Mapping

      Have you created a logic model, or any other project planning and evaluation tool?

      Project Mapping

      Current Phase Icon

      Implementation

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      40 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Have you created a logic model, or any other project planning and evaluation tool?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Engagement is not linear. It does not move from informing to empowering in a straightforward fashion. Each stage of the spectrum is important and each should be designed thoughtfully. Public engagement outcomes are also typically long-term. It’s important to spell out achievable goals in the short-term. If someone was unfamiliar with your project, they should be able to pick up this document and feel acquainted to its scope and process.

      Roadmap

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Writing surface and marker or digitally shared notes.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      Print out the public engagement roadmap and follow the directions. Otherwise draw a start and end point on a white board or large piece of paper.

      In one sentence, write down where you are starting with your public engagement. In another one sentence line, write down your ultimate goal.

      Place your sticky notes on the Public Engagement roadmap or on opposite sides of a drawn-out map.

      Next, review your purpose and desired outcomes from the previous activities. Using the table below, name milestones that are culminating moments for your desired outcomes. For each milestone, describe the actions that encompass it.

      Place your sticky notes on the Public Engagement roadmap or in between your start and end points on a drawn-out map.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • While some milestones can be qualitative, such as increased enthusiasm to participate in local politics, be sure to ground them in measurable outcomes.

      • When you revisit your planning process, you might find unexpected milestones. Be sure to document them as well.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Project Initiation Document
      In addition to explaining what a project initiation document is, this site provides several examples of what items to include in the document.

      Scoping Your Project
      Provides a table that helps define the scope of the project by letting stakeholders fill the blanks in the table.”

      Sustaining Momentum
      Simple tips on how to reignite enthusiasm.

      Before Action Review
      Provides questions that can be asked to assess what previous knowledge team members have.

      Action Plan
      Describes why an action plan is important and how to make one

      Benefits Realization Plan
      This tool helps track your intended project benefits and outcomes while strategizing for useful resources.

      Resources from The NHSScotland Quality Improvement Hub

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_13_Feedback Loops

      Do you know how you’re going to provide updates to the public during and after the project?

      Feedback loops involve communicating small victories or defeat and responding to concerns along the way.

      Activity Icon_13_Feedback Loops

      Feedback Loops

      Do you know how you’re going to provide updates to the public during and after the project?

      Feedback Loops

      Current Phase Icon

      Implementation

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      40 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Do you know how you’re going to provide updates to the public during and after the project?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      Feedback is important for those being listened to. Prioritizing good listening and responding builds trust, which is the foundation of public engagement.

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Writing surface and marker or digitally shared notes.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      Use the milestones identified in the previous exercise. Take five minutes, and individually write 3 feedback loops for each milestone.

      Your feedback loops should include both indicators of listening and authentic listening opportunities. Some examples include:

      • Demonstrating that input was taken in
      • Taking notes
      • “liking” or “retweeting” something on social media
      • Engaging in meaningful conversations by thoughtfully referencing previous conversations
      • Explaining how feedback was incorporated

      Place your feedback loops on your Public Engagement Roadmap next to each milestone. Then, as a group, discuss your feedback loops and select a maximum of three for each milestone. You may use the table below to help organize your thoughts.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Consider short-term and long-term formats of feedback loops. For instance, you might immediately share posts or media from an event online, but you also might want to analyze data collected for a more robust report.

      • How might your participants help you with feedback loops? You can encourage participants to share their input and experiences online to amplify the public engagement messages to others.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_14_Technology

      Do you feel like you have a good understanding of all the tools you’re going to use (digital and analog) and how to use them effectively?

      Have you thought about the differences between Twitter and Facebook? If you’re using fliers or canvassing tactics, do you have a clear understanding of why?

      Activity Icon_14_Technology

      Technology

      Do you feel like you have a good understanding of all the tools you’re going to use (digital and analog) and how to use them effectively?

      Technology

      Current Phase Icon

      Implementation

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      40 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Do you feel like you have a good understanding of all the tools you’re going to use (digital and analog) and how to use them effectively?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      To take stock of all the tools you need. It is important to understand what each technology and medium does and why you’re using it.

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Writing surface and marker, sticky notes, or digitally shared notes.

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      As a group, list all the communication technologies you will employ in your process. One person should write them on a whiteboard or shared digital document. Include both analog and digital technologies, such as Twitter, Facebook, city website, as well as sticky notes, colored dots, Sharpies, etc.

      Next, determine what technologies will be used to facilitate your stated feedback loops. Write the name of the technology on a different colored sticky note and place it on the Roadmap next to your feedback loop.

      Repeat for each milestone.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
      • Try to verify your technology decisions based on data. In other words, don’t simply start using a technology because it appears to be popular. Meet people where they are with the tools they use.

      • You don’t have to start from scratch. Plenty of resources make it easy to adapt templates for your own needs.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Piktochart
      Offers templated infographics for presentations, graphics, and websites.

      Slack
      A messaging and project collaboration platform for teams.

      Canva
      Free templates for presentations, fliers, social media posts, etc.

      Product Hunt
      A simple way to discover innovative and useful applications

    • Iteration

      No matter how much you plan, no project goes unchanged from beginning to end -- all the more reason to document successes and failures. When you pause to reflect, you can better assess if you are on the right track and investing resources wisely. Scheduling opportunities for reflection helps your team decide what adjustments are necessary.

    • Map Image
      Activity Icon_15_Measuring Value

      Do you know how you will evaluate the success of your project and communicate its value?

      Its important to have a strategy for collecting data and determining whether or not your process was effective.

      Activity Icon_15_Measuring Value

      Measuring Value

      Do you know how you will evaluate the success of your project and communicate its value?

      Measuring Value

      Current Phase Icon

      Iteration

      Current Phase

      Activity Length Icon

      40 Minutes

      Activity Length

      Map Image

      Do you know how you will evaluate the success of your project and communicate its value?

      WHY IT'S HELPFUL

      To create a strategy for collecting data and determining whether or not your process was effective.

      SUGGESTED MATERIALS

      Whiteboard and markers, or shared digital document

      RUNNING THE ACTIVITY

      Refer to the Outcomes exercise and write down the top three outcomes on your shared writing surface.

      As a group, discuss what kind of data you can collect to measure your progress towards each outcome. Write them down underneath the outcome. These can include things you can count, such as: Facebook likes, meeting attendance, questionnaires, etc. They also might include more qualitative measures, such as: interviews, recorded stories, observations of events, quality of participation in workshops, etc.

      Discuss how you will systematically and realistically collect data. Who will be responsible for data collection? Who will be responsible for analyzing your data?

      Discuss who needs to see the results of your analysis (i.e. community members, funders, policymakers). Based on this, determine what form your reporting should take. There may be multiple forms. Write each down and discuss how you will get it done.

      THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND

      Build a regular and consistent reflection time into your project planning process.

      ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

      Building Reliable Processes
      What reliable processes are and how to measure them in three steps.

      Actionable Knowledge Products
      Provides a list of examples of actionable knowledge products.

      Driver Diagram
      A driver diagram, broken into three parts - Outcome, Primary drivers and Secondary Drivers - organises information on proposed activities so the relationships between the aim of the improvement project and the changes to be tested and implemented are made clear.

      Gathering Experience and Perception Data
      Provides a table for survey design and tips on how to collect data accurately.

      Value Stream Mapping
      The Value Stream Map sets out the time series of all activities and steps in the current state. It allows the team to identify the value-added (VA), value-enabling (VE) and non-value added (NVA) steps.

      Return on Investment
      Formula for calculating the Return on Investment (ROI) and the implication of the ROI.

      The 7 National Standards for Community Engagement
      Seven clear principles that describe the main elements of effective community engagement. They provide detailed performance statements that everyone involved can use to achieve the highest quality results and the greatest impact.