Developing Greater Linkages with Civil Society Organizations
Last week’s discussion with Munk alumni raised an interesting point about the dynamic between civil society organizations and the public as opposed to the relationship between the government and the public. It was mentioned that government is not well-positioned to be in a trusting relationship with the public and with local communities. I think that the government lacks consistent communication with the public, especially in its role funding nonprofits. It made me think about the level of mis-trust in the government that does currently exist.
I did a brief stint at a nonprofit as a grant writer during the first wave of the pandemic, so I empathize with the challenges that come with funding a nonprofit. In other OECD countries, nonprofits play a larger role in service delivery for example in sectors like long term care.
I think the government needs to capitalize on the established relationships that civil society organizations have with communities, and use the research and reports that nonprofits have produced to guide policymaking. For my part-time job, I’m working with a community of practice and one of the proposals includes building greater expertise networks with external partners. Think tanks, private sector, and the nonprofit sector are target partners that would bring a lot of value to the work of the government. There are constantly emerging issues that need innovative and creative solutions which require diverse perspectives. Sometimes experts tend to develop tunnel vision for their subject matter expertise, and we all know the dangers of groupthink. Additionally, if there is to be more collaboration between the government and the nonprofit sector, some of the cooperation should be allocated to program evaluation to identify best practices and lessons learned.
The comments from Munk alumni regarding the practicality and application of research really resonated with me, specifically the intersection of research, practice, and policy. Additionally, they brought up the great point about the missed opportunities of the planning process, which is often times a catalyst for systems transformation. It was also super interesting to learn about the balancing act nonprofits must undertake when engaging with so many different stakeholders, especially when funding is provided by these stakeholders. But the ultimate lesson I’ve taken from last week’s class was the importance to keep the community at the centre. I think this is critical when it comes to consultations, and ensuring that the sample being consulted with is representative and diverse. It’s also critical in developing programming and services, whether for user-testing or pilot projects.
