The newest public participation tools and trends

Public participation is, as the name implies, a process that enables the “public” (may it be individuals, interest groups, or communities) to be meaningfully involved in matters that affect their lives. These include (amongst others) policy making, scientific research, urban development, and budgeting.

Some traditional examples of public participation practices are the organization of public meetings, hearings, interviews, advisory committees, etc. In all of these, the community is formally given a voice, but whether or not it’s heard is a different story. Because most of these rely on the community organizing and motivating themselves, they are highly dependant on the reach that they have. And that is limited by the tools at their disposal. Thanks to the advent of information technology, the ways in which the public can take part in these decision-making processes have been rapidly evolving.

The first way in which new these new tools are changing public participation is by improving on traditional methods. Surveys, citizen outreach, and public meetings all still play an important role, but the rise in internet availability and technological literacy now offer new, powerful tools that can be used to augment those methods. Surveys, for instance, can be sent out to a larger number of people and the results can be processed virtually instantaneously.

The other way that technology is progressing this field is by introducing entirely new tools that simply couldn’t exist before. With the rise of social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, groups and individuals now have new ways of reaching and informing large audiences at a moments notice and at little to no cost. Moreover, implementing such digital tools opens up new ways of interacting with the public and helps with conceptualizing the data. These tools include the use of 3D models, videos, interactive maps, and even videogames.

Urban planners, in particular, have found novel and exciting ways in which to involve the public in their process. One such participation tool is Maptionnaire. Its usefulness comes from combining traditional surveys with location data and the ability to add images to their answers. That way, cities, and researchers get relevant information on each individual area and can easily identify contentious issues. It also makes it easier for planners to communicate and cooperate with the residents. That can play a large role in the public acceptance of a project.

There are some other interesting tools that urban planners can use. One of them is coUrbanize–it enables the customer (be it a real estate developer or municipality) to provide stakeholders with a clear overview of their project. It also features a “chat room” that allows the residents to answer questions and discuss their opinions with other stakeholders as well as with people who are running the project.

Using these modern approaches can also increase participation by simply making these services fun to use. Research shows that gamification of the decision-making process and a high-level of interactivity can substantially increase the interest of the public. One civic engagement tool that takes advantage of this is Community PlanIt. It’s an online game platform that aims to engage residents in civic planning processes by making them more rewarding and fun. It uses a story-based approach that teaches players about key issues of the engagement process and allows users to connect with each other. It also encourages them to offer their own solutions to presented issues–including them into the problem-solving process.

There are many other modern tools that can also be utilized to improve on communities and projects while also increasing public participation. Because involving the stakeholders is key in designing thriving and happy communities, it’s necessary to augment traditional approaches with newer methods.

There is no doubt that the internet and other technologies will continue to play an integral and ever-increasing role in the way that our communities operate. It, along with other technological solutions, will keep bringing innovative new ways in which the public will be informed and given a voice–ensuring a happy populace.

Written by: Gaber Intihar