Classroom Presentations: Democratic Participation and Innovation

Bring a customized presentation or workshop on public participation to your classroom.

In Canada and around the world, governments and organizations are increasingly innovating with approaches to democratic participation that engage impacted communities and system actors to inform co-create solutions to complex challenges and inform the development of policies and programs. Understanding when and how to effectively invite public participation into decision-making is becoming a key competency for emerging professionals across sectors.

Drawing from the Centre for Dialogue’s years of experience leading public participation initiatives and developing resources on engagement methods, the Centre collaborates with SFU Faculty across departments to develop learning opportunities on democratic participation and innovation. Ranging from short presentations to hands-on workshops, these offerings are customized to complement course curriculums, deepening students’ understanding of the role of public participation in their field.

Embedding Equity in Public Participation

Hearing from people with diverse lived experiences leads to more equitable, effective and sustainable policies and programs. However, many groups of people remain under-represented in decision-making due to systemic barriers and inequities. Drawing from the Centre for Dialogue’s award-winning guide, Beyond Inclusion: Equity in Public Engagement, this workshop introduces students to concepts of inclusion, accessibility and equity within public engagement processes. Outlining eight principles for equitable engagement, the workshop invites critical reflection of public consultation processes and draws connections to equitable practices in community-based research.  

This workshop will:

• Define equity, inclusion and accessibility in public participation;
• Outline eight principles of equitable engagement, illustrated by real-world case-studies; and
• Provide examples of specific strategies to address common barriers to accessibility.

In a workshop format, students are invited to engage in experiential activities to practice applying the principles of equitable engagement to engagement planning scenarios in their field, such as mapping impacted communities or designing accessibility strategies. 

Catching the Deliberative Wave

Among the range of public participation tools and methods, “deliberative” models, such as Citizens’ Assemblies, are increasingly being used to engage members of the public in informed discussion around complex challenges, leading to the development of robust policy recommendations. This workshop introduces emerging models of deliberation, with case studies from relevant policy areas, and orients students to the growing scholarship on deliberation. 

This workshop will:

• Define and provide a brief history of deliberative democracy;
• Outline common models for public deliberation, highlighting case studies of recent developments in local and global contexts;
• Explain when engaging the public through deliberation is most appropriate and how deliberative models can complement broader engagement tools; 
• Outline key planning considerations; and
• Introduce key sources of information and scholarship on deliberative democracy

In a workshop format, students are invited to engage in experiential exercises, such as identifying policy challenges within their field that would lend themselves to a deliberative process. 

Five Types of Engagement to Accelerate Climate Action

Successful climate action requires a sustained whole-of-society response that is strengthened by engaging diverse members of the public and civil society to navigate trade-offs and co-create solutions. Using real-world examples from local to global contexts, this workshop introduces students to emerging approaches to climate engagement and introduces key sources of information and scholarship on climate engagement.

This workshop will: 

• Present the business case for climate engagement, contexts where engagement can add value, and common reasons for/against engaging;
• Outline five types of climate engagement and how these can be combined to advance systems change, including deliberative, relationship-based, place-based, large-scale and systems-oriented engagement;
• Share real-world case studies that illustrate planning considerations for climate engagement;
• Direct students to additional learning resources on climate engagement.

In a workshop format, students are invited to engage in experiential exercises, such as identifying approaches to climate engagement that are best suited to specific policy challenges.