Community Consultation Research Articles

Power Struggles in a Small Town Community: The Intersection of Rural Environmental Protest, Politics, and Hyperlocal News Media

This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals the complex ways that community groups and activism, hyperlocal news media, and political power intersect through rural environmental disputes. An important but under-recognized feature of such conflicts is the unique role performed by notions of rurality in the construction of environmental protests, discourses, and decisions; that is, the ways in which rural communities’ conservation efforts can be unfairly characterized as “backwards” and “anti-development”. Through a series of interviews and focus groups with protestors and residents, our case study examines a controversial boat ramp development that had a marked environmental impact on the isolated coastal town of Mallacoota (population 1,000) in the state of Victoria, Australia. We show that the environmental activism of protesters lifted the issue's visibility to the level of regional, state, and national news and politics. But the community consultation processes that occurred in response to protests raise significant concerns about government decision making that fails to acknowledge and negotiate the diverse understandings of place and rurality that exist within a community. The outcomes of struggles for power in this small town are lamentable and lasting, damaging the hyperlocal news environment and undermining the community newspaper's reputation among citizens.

Perlindungan Hukum Terhadap Anak Korban Narkotika dalam Proses Peradilan

Abstract: Purpose: The purpose of writing this journal is to find out the diversion arrangements at the level of investigation of children who commit narcotic crimes, and find out the rights violated in investigations and efforts to protect the law against children who commit narcotic crimes. Methodology: The method used is a normative approach, namely through the study of legislation and literature, and the empirical approach is through field research by conducting a series of interviews with respondents and informants to obtain field data. Results: The results of the study show that the regulation of diversion at the level of investigation of children who commit narcotics crimes means that there is absolute authority from investigators to carry out diversion efforts against children who commit narcotic crimes, but of all the cases handled so far none of the diversion attempts have been successful. applied. The rights that are violated in the investigation of children who commit narcotics crimes are that the investigator does not prioritize the principle of the best interests of the child, the investigator does not provide legal assistance and other assistance, the investigator does not ask for expert opinion in carrying out the investigation, and does not notify the right to obtain legal assistance. Efforts to protect the law against children who commit criminal acts of narcotics abuse in investigations, namely asking parents and Community Advisors to accompany children during the investigation process, provide guidance to children while undergoing a period of detention at the investigative level, and complete the investigation process within a time limit of 7 (seven) days with an extension of 8 (eight) days. Keywords: 1. Legal Protection 2. Child Victims 3. Narcotics

Ethical and practical considerations arising from community consultation on implementing controlled human infection studies using Schistosoma mansoni in Uganda

ABSTRACT Issues related to controlled human infection studies using Schistosoma mansoni (CHI-S) were explored to ensure the ethical and voluntary participation of potential CHI-S volunteers in an endemic setting in Uganda. We invited volunteers from a fishing community and a tertiary education community to guide the development of informed consent procedures. Consultative group discussions were held to modify educational materials on schistosomiasis, vaccines and the CHI-S model and similar discussions were held with a test group. With both groups, a mock consent process was conducted. Fourteen in-depth key informant interviews and three group discussions were held to explore perceptions towards participating in a CHI-S. Most of the participants had not heard of the CHI-S. Willingness to take part depended on understanding the study procedures and the consenting process. Close social networks were key in deciding to take part. The worry of adverse effects was cited as a possible hindrance to taking part. Volunteer time compensation was unclear for a CHI-S. Potential volunteers in these communities are willing to take part in a CHI-S. Community engagement is needed to build trust and time must be taken to share study procedures and ensure understanding of key messages.

Reparative Approaches to Philippine Collections at the University of Michigan

The University of Michigan’s role in US colonial expansion resulted in the accumulation of one of the largest Philippine cultural and natural history collections in North America. It is time for the university to address its colonial complicity in the formation of these collections by developing decolonial practices so that the institution can provide reciprocal and reparative access to these Philippine collections. In response, the ReConnect/ReCollect project is currently developing and testing relative approaches for culturally responsive and historically minded stewardship of Philippine materials at the university. Our overall goal is to create both the framework and the corresponding set of practices that will intervene in contemporary scholarship and curation to pursue what constitutes reparative work for Philippine collections. We engage in three interrelated interventions: reparative curation, reparative connections to community and reparative scholarship. Our anticipated outcomes include a full inventory of the university’s Philippine collections, opening our collections for iterative and inclusive community engagement and the creation of a multiplatform toolkit for reparative actions. The first project of its kind for Philippine collections, this work holds far-reaching implications, offering a new vantage point from which to engage scholarly conversations around decolonising collections. Our project builds on recent efforts to decolonise collections, which foreground Indigenous perspectives and community collaboration, consultation and dialogue to construct a model of relationality and shared stewardship.

Counter‐mapping Heritage: Memory and Significance in Places of Racialised Land Dispossession: The Case of Lower Claremont, Cape Town

AbstractIn this study I investigate the use of counter‐mapping methodologies to identify memories and significance in landscapes of racialised dispossession in the city of Cape Town. I use oral history, a go‐along or walking interview and focus group workshop to test the counter‐mapping process. In doing so I trace the historical process of land and housing loss under apartheid as an extension of colonialism and its modernist project of racial separation, and the effects and affects on those dispossessed into the post‐apartheid period. I critically assess the official frameworks of heritage resource management, especially in the post‐apartheid period, which have continued to focus on the built environment and aesthetics, despite official attempts to incorporate consultation of communities, stakeholders and their values. I do so in order to highlight the need for transformation and inclusion in current heritage practice in order to address disparities in the practice. Counter‐mapping methodologies are presented in the research as potential tools to address these contentious practices. These contentions intersect strongly in areas included in the Heritage Protection Overlay Zoning (HPOZ) in the City of Cape Town.1 The research shows that the HPOZ is geared towards managing the built environment and give attention to contextual development issues. It is however, not able to deal with memories and intangible values of the dispossessed in places where it intersects with land dispossession. The study also presents how research participants understand their heritage, which at times strengthens the official framework, and at other times stands in opposition to and in contrast to the official framework. These significances are mapped using counter‐mapping methodologies. The study concludes that counter‐mapping methodologies are able to represent memory and intangible significance in places of racialised land dispossession, and that the methodologies have multiple uses for varying settings and purposes, which speak to a modernist vision in post‐apartheid's constitutional democracy that fulfills the promise of fairness and justice.

Women’s understanding and experiences of menopause in low-income and middle-income countries in the Asia Pacific region: a scoping review protocol

IntroductionMenopause denotes the end of a woman’s reproductive life. A woman’s experiences of menopause are shaped by her individual circumstances and may vary between social and cultural contexts. Evidence is...

City Symphony

City Symphony

The Right to Play: Snakes and Ladders

This case-study will present learnings from the public art project ‘Snakes and Ladders’, a fifty metre, ground plane mural in Sydney Olympic Park, in Sydney’s western suburbs. This was a collaboration between Digby Webster, an artist with Down syndrome, and Nadia Odlum, an artist without disability who specialises in playful, large-scale public art. Snakes and Ladders was commissioned by the Sydney Olympic Parks Authority (SOPA) as a result of a community consultation and co-design process, and was supported by Accessible Arts, the peak body for advancing the rights of New South Wales artists who have disability and/or who are d/Deaf. The result was a public artwork that functions as an inclusive playspace, supporting the right to play for all people who visit or live in Sydney Olympic Park.The key achievements of this project were the meaningful inclusion of an artist with disability in a significant public art project, and the creation of an accessible and inclusive opportunity for play in public space. This case-study focuses on process, including the community consultation process that led to the commission; the role of peak body Accessible Arts in facilitating and guiding the commission; the methods used to ensure accessibility in the artwork design; and the collaborative process between Digby and Nadia, including the steps taken to support Digby’s access requirements and ensure his full participation in the commission from concept to delivery.
 
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Community Perspectives and Environmental Justice Issues in an Unincorporated Black Township.

Through each era, the southeastern United States was and continues to be an epicenter for industrial companies to establish factories and plants. Though this development attracts economic gain for the companies and surrounding areas, low-income and predominantly Black communities bear the brunt of the environmental consequences while frequently remaining stagnant economically. This qualitative, community-based participatory research study grew out of a larger study designed to recruit lay community advisors from communities labeled as hard to reach in research. We focus on Holt, Alabama, an unincorporated community in the southeastern United States region. The primary goal of this research inquiry is to thematically analyze community interviews stemming from a topic of research, practice, and policy interest to community members: the effects of industrial pollution on Holt citizens’ daily lives. Content analysis of focus-group transcripts revealed four emergent themes, including: (1) how the pollution affects their water, soil, and air quality; (2) illness related to pollution; (3) community engagement and empowerment; and (4) suggestions regarding what government officials could do to address this area of need. Building upon the prior research regarding environmental justice, human flourishing, and the definition of nurturing environments, suggestions are made regarding the creation, implementation, and maintenance of project advisory councils focused on issues of environmental justice. Community advocacy and empowerment as well as community and scientific partnerships are imperative to alleviate problems associated with environmental justice.

Building the blueprint: Formulating a community-generated national plan for future research in inherited bleeding disorders.

IntroductionDecades of inherited bleeding disorders (BD) research transformed severe haemophilia from a childhood killer to a disorder managed across a full lifespan for many in economically developed countries. Health equity, a life unimpaired by disease complications, however, remains unimaginable for most people with an inherited BD (PWIBD).AimThe National Hemophilia Foundation (NHF) and American Thrombosis and Hemostasis Network (ATHN) undertook the development of a community‐driven United States (US) National Blueprint for Inherited Bleeding Disorders Research to transform the experience of all PWIBD and those who care for them.MethodsExtensive community consultations were conducted to identify the issues most important to PWIBD and those who love and care for them. Expert multidisciplinary teams distilled these key areas of need into prioritised research questions, and identified the resources and infrastructure required to pursue them. A summit was held to gather feedback and inform the detailed blueprint.ResultsCommunity‐prioritised research areas fell into three broad categories: issues common across inherited BDs, those specific to individual disorders, and issues of infrastructure and capacity. NHF State of the Science Research Summit discussions of the research questions derived from the community priorities by six working groups provided important input for the drafting of the research blueprint for the coming decades.ConclusionThe inherited BD community came together to develop the US National Blueprint for Inherited Bleeding Disorders Research dedicated to transforming the lives of all PWIBD including innovating solutions for the rarest disorders and under‐represented populations.

Shelter Self-Recovery: The Experience of Vanuatu

This paper draws from a research project that explored the lived reality of communities in Vanuatu recovering from major disasters to understand the impacts of shelter interventions by humanitarian organizations. It focuses on “shelter self-recovery”, anapproach followed by organizations after recent disasters. A global overview of self-recovery highlights the potential of this approach to support recovery pathways and indicates the reliance on local context. The overview shows the need for more evidence on the impact of self-recovery programs. In Vanuatu, the study was undertaken in three island sites—Tanna, Maewo and Pentecost—affected by different disasters, particularly cyclones. It examined three main issues: (a) understanding and interpretation of self-recovery; (b) how the approach has evolved over time; and (c) what is being done by communities to support self-recovery to reduce future disaster risk. Key findings from the field indicated that devastation by disasters such as cyclones can cause a serious scarcity of natural building materials, which impedes the self-recovery process. The other significant issue is that of traditional versus modern building materials, where many people aspire for modern houses. However, poorly constructed modern houses pose a risk in disasters, and there are examples of shelters made of traditional materials that provide safety. Drawing from the field investigations, a set of recommendations were developed for more effective shelter self-recovery by humanitarian agencies in partnership with communities and other stakeholders. These recommendations place importance on contextual factors, community consultation and engagement, and addressing the supply of natural building materials.

Assessing elements of energy justice in Colombia: A case study on transmission infrastructure in La Guajira

The United Nations declaration of a climate urgency in 2020 has intensified the need for change in energy systems across the world. This has resulted in political attention increasingly shifting to the development of low-carbon energy infrastructure. In the case of Colombia, the energy transition has brought a focus on the La Guajira region for its potential wind energy resources and the associated need for new transmission infrastructure. La Guajira is characterised by an extractive-based economy, poor socioeconomic performance and a large indigenous population. This research uses the energy justice framework to examine the justice dynamics that affect the acceptance of a proposed transmission line project. With a special focus on procedural, distributive and recognition justice, the findings that are also based on semi-structured interviews reveal interrelated equity concerns. They further highlight that recognition justice can be an underpinning force of a just transition to a low-carbon economy. The research results follow previous research but also significantly demonstrates that the roles of community advisors and experts are influential. They can foster or block energy justice. Further, this study provides evidence that the ongoing energy transition has a major hurdle of procedural justice through social acceptance. This has occurred mainly due to the legacy effects of the operations of conventional energy sources in the region. This advances the case that to achieve a just transition to a low-carbon economy, unjust legacy policies and actions of the fossil fuel industry have to be addressed.

Understanding Sociocultural Influences on Physical Activity in Relation to Overweight and Obesity in a Rural Indigenous Community of Fiji Islands

IntroductionGiven health disparities and increased rates of obesity and non-communicable diseases seen in Indigenous populations worldwide and the evidence connecting sociocultural knowledge with physical activity, health, and wellbeing, this research was undertaken to understand the social and cultural components contributing to obesity in the Indigenous Fijian rural areas.MethodsThis research is a community-based participatory research (CBPR) project, which engaged community members from a rural iTaukei village in the Fiji Islands. Data collection was carried out through community consultation and semi-structured interviews. The data was analysed using descriptive thematic analysis.ResultsFour major themes emerged associated with sociocultural, economic, political, and physical environmental factors. Males emphasised sports and working on farmlands as preferred types of physical activity, while females focused on family activities and daily activities and support for females’ separate playgrounds. There was a focus on previous health promotion programs that did not incorporate the cultural values, cultural competence beliefs, and traditional ways of the rural Indigenous Fijian community.ConclusionThe healthcare providers and policymakers need to recognise the iTaukei community culture and appreciate traditional methods to promote equitable community participation in decision-making for health promotion. These findings should inform future research and community-based health programs to address the physical activity levels of the rural Indigenous community and may be relevant to other Indigenous peoples.

Minecraft and Playful Public Participation in Urban Design

Digital networks are transforming the way in which our built environment is planned, designed, and developed. Whilst many have heralded this technology as a solution to the problems of citizen engagement and participation in planning and design processes, the state of public participation in this field still arguably leaves much to be desired. In the last decade, academics and practitioners have explored the possibilities of 3D, multi-user, digital environments in planning and urban design contexts. These “inhabited virtual spaces,” where stakeholders are represented through digital avatars, hold the possibility of engaging a much wider audience in participatory processes, creating a more democratic and bottom-up process, and improving the outcome of community consultations. These multi-user environments can take many forms—and among the most promising are game environments. The benefits of using play and games in creative tasks and decision-making have been widely recorded, leading to the developing field of “serious games,” games which have been designed to accomplish a serious task. Despite this, there has been a reluctance to entertain the idea of appropriating more commercial and widely played games for serious tasks, rather than designing ones from scratch. One game in particular, Minecraft, has shown promising results as part of a participatory design methodology pioneered by UN-Habitat and the Block by Block Foundation. Through an analysis of this program, I will explore how the videogame<em> </em>Minecraft might be used as an innovative tool to improve public participation in urban design, whilst offering a virtual alternative to traditional models of consultation.

Building capacity in those who deliver palliative care services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Summary The role of culture in palliative care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples builds on over 60 000 years of history and includes meaningful practices to support a good “finishing up”.The Gwandalan National Palliative Care Project aims to build capacity in those who deliver palliative care to embed culturally responsive care in all end‐of‐life settings.Community consultation, value co‐creation and user‐centred design ensured that diverse Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives informed the Gwandalan curriculum.Emerging communities of practice serve as yarning circles where barriers to and enablers of service delivery can be shared and addressed collaboratively.

Including the excluded in the integrated development planning process for improved community participation

This article aims to assess the Integrated Development Planning (IDP) process for improved community participation. The IDP process was developed to improve strategic planning and community participation at the municipal level. Many South African municipalities have been struggling to use the IDP process to improve community participation. The methodology included 400 respondents who were chosen through a probability sampling technique and probed to complete the online survey using a closed-ended questionnaire guide, and ten respondents were also chosen through a non-probability sampling technique and were face-to-face interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide. The key findings revealed that poor community participation exists in the study area due to a lack of encouragement from responsible authorities. The Tzaneen municipality does not provide adequate feedback to the communities, and the inputs of the communities are not considered. There is a continuous lack of community consultation during the annual review of the IDP. The ineffective IDP process for improved community participation presents several challenges. Thus, this article concluded by providing a few recommendations to enhance the application of the IDP process and community participation. The Tzaneen municipal area should at all times uphold democratic principles by ensuring active public participation, transparency, and openness in municipal affairs. It also recommends making it easier for marginalised and previously disadvantaged people to participate in municipal policy and decision-making without prejudice. South African municipalities, including Tzaneen municipality, should develop and innovate institutional, and organisational capabilities to better utilise their resources, mitigate socio-economic challenges and enhance service delivery.

A Community-Engaged Process for Adapting a Proven Community Health Worker Model to Integrate Precision Cancer Care Delivery for Low-income Latinx Adults With Cancer.

Disparities in precision cancer care delivery among low-income Latinx adults are well described. In prior work, we developed a community health worker-led goals of care and cancer symptom assessment intervention. The objective of this study was to adapt this intervention for a community setting, incorporating precision cancer care delivery. We used a two-phased systematic approach to adapt an evidence-based intervention for our community. Specifically, we used the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework to identify barriers and facilitators to precision cancer care delivery via 1-hr interviews with Latinx adults with cancer, Latinx caregivers, community leaders, primary care and oncology clinicians, and community health workers. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using the constant comparative method and grounded theory analysis. Phase 2 involved interviews with key community advisors using the Expert Panels Method to decide on final adaptations. Using this community-engaged approach, we identified specific intervention adaptations to ensure precision cancer care delivery in a community setting, which included: (a) expansion of the intervention inclusion criteria and mode of delivery; (b) integration of low-literacy precision cancer care intervention activities in Spanish in collaboration with community-based organizations; (c) ensuring goals reflective of patient and community priorities. This systematic and community-engaged approach to adapt an intervention for use in delivering precision cancer care strengthened an evidence-based approach to promote the needs and preferences of patients and key community stakeholders.

The Impact of Pro-Poor Sanitation Subsidies in Open Defecation-Free Communities: A Randomized, Controlled Trial in Rural Ghana.

Background:According to the World Health Organization/United Nations International Children’s Fund Joint Monitoring Program, people practice open defecation globally. After achieving open defecation-free (ODF) status through efforts such as Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS), communities (particularly vulnerable households) may revert to open defecation, especially when toilet collapse is common and durable toilets are unaffordable. Accordingly, there is increasing interest in pro-poor sanitation subsidies.Objectives:This study determined the impacts of a pro-poor sanitation subsidy program on sanitation conditions among the most vulnerable households and others in the community.Methods:In 109 post-ODF communities in Northern Ghana, we conducted a cluster randomized controlled trial to evaluate a pro-poor subsidy program that identified the most vulnerable households through community consultation to receive vouchers for durable toilet substructures. We surveyed households to assess toilet coverage, quality, and use before and after the intervention and tracked program costs.Results:Overall, sanitation conditions deteriorated substantially from baseline to endline (average of 21 months). In control communities (not receiving the pro-poor subsidy), open defecation increased from 25% (baseline) to 69% (endline). The subsidy intervention attenuated this deterioration (open defecation increased from 25% to only 54% in subsidy communities), with the greatest impacts among voucher-eligible households. Noneligible households in compounds with subsidized toilets also exhibited lower open defecation levels owing to in-compound sharing (common in this context). CLTS followed by the subsidy program would benefit more households than CLTS alone but would cost 21–37% more per household that no longer practiced open defecation or upgraded to a durable toilet.Discussion:Sanitation declines, often due to toilet collapse, suggest a need for approaches beyond CLTS alone. This subsidy program attenuated declines, but durable toilets likely remained unaffordable for noneligible households. Targeting criteria more closely aligned with sanitation inequities, such as household heads who are female or did not complete primary education, may help to generate greater and more sustainable impacts in Northern Ghana and, potentially, other contexts facing toilet collapse and limited market access. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP10443

Development and validation of a multidimensional, culturally and socially inclusive Child Resilience Questionnaire (parent/caregiver report) to measure factors that support resilience: a community-based participatory research and psychometric testing study in Australia

ObjectiveDevelop a comprehensive socially inclusive measure to assess child resilience factors.DesignA socioecological model of resilience, community-based participatory research methods and two rounds of psychometric testing created the Child Resilience Questionnaire...

Doing things differently: Bridging community concerns and energy system modelling with a transdisciplinary approach in rural Ireland

This paper reflects on the experience of co-producing energy strategies on the Dingle peninsula, a rural peripheral region in Ireland's South West. For the past three years, researchers from sociology, community development, and energy engineering have worked in partnership with Ireland's electricity distribution system operator and local non-profit organisations supporting enterprise and community development in the region. This involved coordinating the research with the transdisciplinary partnership established and widespread community consultation (including fifteen community meetings that received roughly 400 attendees) to understand the concerns and priorities of residents. The initial research focus was to incorporate stakeholder preferences into energy scenarios using a simulation modelling tool (Low Emissions Analysis Platform, LEAP). This was revised in favour of support for local development effort to prepare a strategic plan for the area across social, economic, and environmental domains. Widening the scope in this manner posed a serious methodological challenge but was necessary to respond to local needs and foster local impact. The results highlight the imperative of understanding the messy reality within which energy systems operate, and the need to align rural development with climate action policies via authentic engagement. A key contribution from this novel approach is to shine a critical light on the limitations of energy system models. This research serves to highlight the need for co-production/action research efforts that can support real-world transition processes and provide a better understanding of local contexts as an alternative to efforts that would seek to simply improve societal representations within energy system models.