Build relationships with the public and engage them in decision making 

Public participation is a cornerstone of democracy, and yet engaging the public can be risky business. One bad experience can produce a career-lasting wariness of public engagement. This session is designed to help you determine when and how to engage the public so that it is a satisfying and informing process for everyone involved. We’ll explore the different intentions of public education, public hearings, dialogue and deliberation processes. This interactive session will have plenty of practice time, allowing you to build on your own diagnosis and facilitation skills.  

By the end of this class, you should be able to: 

• Define the role of public managers in offering and leading public engagement experiences. 
• Learn when and how to engage participants in public issues. 
• Differentiate between the intended outcomes of engagement (sharing information), dialogue (building relationships) and deliberation (involving the public in decision-making).  
• Explore readily available processes for engagement like, National Issues Forum, the World Café, Community Visioning and Appreciative Inquiry. 
• Practice building your facilitation competencies for achieving positive outcomes.  

Instructor: Annie Jones is a Professor, Organization Development and Tribal Nations Specialist with the UW-Madison, Division of Extension. She brings over two decades of experience with working with local governments and organizations to engage the public in visioning and participation processes.