Answer:
Public participation can be any process that directly engages the public in decision-making and gives full consideration to public input in making that decision. Public participation is a process, not a single event. It consists of a series of activities and actions by a sponsoring agency over the full lifespan of a project to both inform the public and obtain input from them. Public participation affords stakeholders (those that have an interest or stake in an issue, such as individuals, interest groups, and communities) the opportunity to influence decisions that affect their lives.
Step-by-step explanation:
Effective public participation depends in part on a sponsor agency’s willingness and ability to involve the public in the decision process. While it is critical that sponsor agencies develop the skills to think through, plan for, and implement a public participation process, it is no less important that the public develop the capacity to participate effectively in decision processes. A well-designed and sincere participation process will not fulfill its potential if the public lacks the necessary participation skills. Hence, it is important for government agencies to build the public’s participation capacity.
Building participation capacity can be achieved in several ways:
- Modeling the behaviors that you want to see exhibited throughout the process
- Developing and sharing with the public guidance documents that promote the core values of public participation and delineate best practices
- Providing training to community leaders and stakeholder representatives in foundational public participation and communication skills
- Giving special consideration and attention to vulnerable populations and marginalized communities.
- Identifying facilitative leaders within sponsor agencies to mentor community groups/leaders by partnering with them during the planning and implementation of public participation processes. Inviting the public to participate in planning the process can create a sense of ownership among the public
- Hiring professional third-party facilitators to provide instruction at the project outset to sponsor agency staff and external stakeholders on participatory behaviors and techniques
- Where appropriate, use deliberative forums that encourage more active forms of participation instead of selecting forums that are viewed by sponsor agencies as being more “safe” because they control participation
- Providing technical assistance to the public or community groups to help them understand technical information relevant to the decision.
These strategies can help build the public’s capacity for participation. Ongoing interest in public participation, however, will depend on the extent to which public participation processes result in the opportunity for meaningful public input and influence on projects, and the degree to which sponsoring agencies are accountable for these results.
Hope it helped! :)