Participatory Practices in Community Services for the Unemployed Poor

Abstract

This article was previously presented as a paper at the International Conference“Ethics and Integrity of Governance: A Transatlantic Dialogue.” We focus on families in poverty, a group who is currently often excluded from civic engagement. We want to stimulate thinking about the inclusion of their voices in policy formation, implementation, and evaluation. We go deeper into a new practice of activation of the long-term unemployed, namely community services, situated in the social economy sector in Flanders (Belgium). After introducing the basic concepts, we formulate arguments in support of a competence approach and a participatory approach. Then we touch on the problematic of the translation of this approach into policy criteria.