Abstract
Transition arenas that do not converge with policy windows to achieve structural or institutional change often fail to achieve their stated transformative goals. For their part, policy windows often lead to only incremental change. On their own, transition management and the multiple streams approach seem inadequate to the challenges facing cities. However, in combination, they can be transformative, as exemplified by the Citizens Committee for the Future of Phoenix Transportation. In 2015, this committee in Phoenix, AZ passed a ~USD 31.5 billion 2050 transportation plan funded by a sales tax increase from 0.4 to 0.7%. This plan’s development realized a policy window in a transition arena through an instrumental boundary object workshop with innovative facilitation. This article sets out to explore, based on this in-depth, applied transition arena process, how to combine transition management and the multiple streams approach to increase the transformative potential of transition arenas. The multiple streams approach and transition management have rarely been used simultaneously or had their integration planned. However, this case from Phoenix, AZ illustrates the potential for boundary objects and facilitation processes in designing for the convergence of policy windows and transition arenas.
Highlights
Transition arenas [1,2,3] that do not converge with policy windows [4,5] have largely failed to achieve their stated goals, i.e., “the aspired large scale systemic changes” [2] (p. 63)
The boundary object workshop hosted 24 of the 35 CCFPT members broken into five teams facilitated by City of Phoenix staff (e.g., Figure 2)
The premise of the boundary object workshop relied on the guiding principle of diversity from transition management, “a context to reflect, open up, and explore variety” [2] (p. 60), in contrast to the value acceptability of the multiple streams approach (MSA): “proposals likely to survive conform to existing value constraints” [5] (p. 16)
Summary
Transition arenas [1,2,3] that do not converge with policy windows [4,5] have largely failed to achieve their stated goals, i.e., “the aspired large scale systemic changes” [2] (p. 63). A policy window occurs when the three streams of Kingdon’s multiple streams approach (MSA) [4] flow together Those streams are (1) problems perceived by political actors, (2) policies acceptable in the current discourse and implementable given available resources, and (3) politics aligning the interests of the public or powerful actors with a problem and policy. In 2000, City of Phoenix voters passed the Transit 2000 Regional Transportation Plan (T2000), with a 0.4% sales tax to supplement funding for bus, light rail, and other transit These two taxes were indications that “co-evolving processes in economy, society, ecology, and technology” [2] The T2000 sales tax was scheduled to expire in 2020, which would have reduced light rail, bus, and other transit services in Phoenix by up to 60% [35] To prevent this extreme service disruption, Mayor Greg Stanton and Phoenix’s City Council established the CCFPT in 2014. This committee included a wide variety of Phoenix organizations and constituencies, ranging from large businesses to mission-driven transit organizations, a libertarian think tank, and service providers for the homeless
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