Public Participation Practices Research Articles

What law does not understand about public participation

Public participation plays a vital role in developing and implementing climate policies. However, in practice, it is challenging to organise public participation effectively. In this paper, we compare three main regulatory approaches to public participation, the Aarhus Convention, the Escazú Agreement and the Impact and Benefits Agreements, in light of their ability to implement social sciences insights on effective public participation. By linking the social sciences and law, our analysis shows that the shortcomings of each regime, when individually taken, potentially explain why public participation practices face difficulty fulfilling the envisaged goals.

Perceived Values of Public Participation Practices in Budgeting: Insights From Incorporated Local Governments in Oregon

This field notes provide insights into how local officials value different participatory procedures used to inform and invite the public to participation activities, and participatory mechanisms used to solicit public input during budget decision-making processes. The analysis is based on a framework that helps categorize and assess traditional, non-digital participatory practices versus modern, digital ones. Using survey responses from local officials in Oregon, the findings reveal greater value for modern methods like government websites and social media to inform and invite residents to public participation activities, but more traditional methods like public hearings and citizen committees to solicit their input. The author offers practical suggestions for fostering meaningful public engagement, and the need for practitioners is to be adaptable to innovative strategies that guarantees their participatory procedures and mechanisms are inclusive, accessible, and responsive to the changing needs of communities.

Building citizen science intelligence for outbreak preparedness and response: a mixed-method study in nine countries to assess knowledge, readiness and feasibility

IntroductionCitizen science (CS) is an emerging approach in public health to harness the collective intelligence of individuals to augment traditional scientific efforts. However, citizens’ viewpoint, especially the hard-to-reach population, is...

Institutionalisation of public participation in China's urban regeneration from the perspective of historical institutionalism: Three-stage cases in Guangzhou

Research into public participation in urban regeneration holds a significant position in global urban research, with a considerable body of literature describing the practices of multiple stakeholders' participation in diverse institutional contexts. In the centralised dynamic context for China's urban regeneration, the institutional arrangements and practices of public participation and the evolution processes between them still remain “black boxes”. This paper aims to clarify the institutionalisation process of public participation in China's urban regeneration. Using the historical institutionalism perspective, this research adapts the institutionalisation framework proposed by Burns and Scapens (2000) to the analysis of participatory governance in China's planning context. It analyses three phases of urban regeneration in Guangzhou and provides corresponding case studies for an in-depth analysis. The findings reveal that the success of public participation in urban regeneration varies across phases, mainly due to the degree of government power sharing and the inclusion of non-governmental actors in decision-making through genuinely participative interactions. This research develops an institutionalisation analysis framework and notes that the proposed institutionalisation path only partially applies to public participation in China's urban regeneration. The institutionalisation of public participation from the institutional realm to the realm of action in China's regeneration practices departs from hysteresis, which is the opposite of synchronisation in historical institutionalism. The root cause of this inefficient institutionalisation and its separation from practice is the imbalance in the allocation of power resources. These findings provide institutionalisation insights into the interrelationships between the evolution of policy and practices of public participation.

From the arrival cities to affordable cities in China: Seeing through the practices of rural migrants' participation in Guangzhou's urban village regeneration

Urban village regeneration has been considered an effective way to achieve the vision of transforming the arrival cities in China to affordable cities. However, the existing research into urban village regeneration does not pay enough attention to the group of rural migrants, and the dynamic process of their participation is indistinct. With a theoretical underpinning of the conception of Arrival City and Affordable City and the ladder theory of participation, this paper attempts to understand the practices of rural migrants' participation in urban village regeneration and, more importantly, to unpack the underlying mysteries of the transition process from arrival cities to affordable cities in China. The paper finds that rural migrants are involved in urban village regeneration indirectly, as opposed to directly or not participating at all. Before a regeneration project take places, they are expelled and ostracised by the alliance of “government-developer-villager” because of their informal identities. After the project, middle-class migrants lived in the regenerated urban villages but suffered from social exclusion. Most of the migrants gather in the newer urban villages or form new arrival cities in the urban periphery, resulting in potential social conflicts and a vicious cycle of “regeneration – migration – regeneration – migration”. The vision is realised only in the environment and discourses from the alliance, but not in terms of rural migrants. China's urban transition from arrival cities to affordable cities is incomplete and one-sided. This transition, guided as it is by the existing mechanism of urban village regeneration, undermines social equity and causes social conflicts, which is not sustainable. These findings and proposed corresponding suggestions can serve as valuable references for the practices of public participation in urban regeneration that are underway in developing countries or where there is eagerness to transition effectively from arrival cities to affordable cities.

Цифровизация социально-политического взаимодействия: мобилизация реальной и виртуальной коммуникации

Digital communication allows almost every subject of social and political interaction to act as a communicator, interpreter, and broadcaster of information. Online users can also act as petitioners, appealing to the authorities, other citizens, opinion leaders, experts, etc. Government representatives are interpreters and administrators of political decisions. Digital communication gives them an opportunity to demonstrate their social positions, citizenship, solidarity, and attitudes. And this is where the following contradiction arrives. On the one hand, the authorities need to mobilize real and virtual communication. On the other hand, they perceive mobilized population as a threat: to be controlled, organized social communities require resources, as well as complex and expensive measures. The authors reviewed publications that featured socio-political interaction. The review revealed that the mobilization of civic participation remains understudied. Digitalization increases the importance and relevance of network practices of social activism. Traditional forms of interaction between community members and authorities are gradually being replaced by networked, flexible, and participatory ones. Constructive and destructive forms of mobilization transform socio-political relations. The review provided a diversification of constructive and destructive practices of public participation in decision-making at federal, regional, local, and company levels. Digital forms and methods of socio-political interaction increase in number, and theri measurement indicators keep changing.

From Peripheral Actors to Established Players: Environmental NGOs’ Participation Through Public Notice-And-Comment Procedures and Environmental Public Interest Litigation in China

ABSTRACT Despite the tightening control over civil society in China in the last decade, environmental NGOs’ participation in the regulatory process via legalized channels has increased. Drawing on participant observations, interviews, and court judgments, this article examines the recent dynamics of institutional participation of environmental NGOs through public notice-and-comment procedures and environmental public interest litigation (EPIL) in China. With stable opportunities for engagement, environmental NGOs have begun to turn themselves from peripheral actors into established players by helping identify and enforce violations, filling statutory gaps, and providing additional information and expertise in public notice-and-comment procedures and EPIL suits. While challenges remain, this article suggests that the practices of institutional public participation and changing citizen expectations hold great potential for promoting the pluralization of environmental regulation in authoritarian China.

基层立法联系点：公众参与立法的生动实践

基层立法联系点：公众参与立法的生动实践

Türkiye Küresel Rekabetçi Kentlerde Kentsel Yönetim: Kent Hakki Perspektifi Üzerinde Bir Araştırma

Today, the city's values, representation, and reinforcing through the participatory process are turned into an eye by the principle of “governance”. The right to city one of the indicators is represented with the lens of it. On the other hand, the global city concept is strongly connected with fundamental shifts from traditional government structures to a modern governance mode. This study has focused on the theoretical context of urban governance, linkage with urban governance, right to the city and new urban policy, and its application according to the perspective of new urban politics. Application has been viewed from Turkish global competitive city perspectives by highlighting different indexes. The study found that Turkish cities should improve their public participation practices to strengthen their position for global competition. People-based policies should be strengthened and regulated to better fight in the arena of new urban politics; and bottom-up policies can play an effective role in ensuring right to the city.

Public participation in seabed mining in areas beyond national jurisdiction: Lessons learned from national regulators in the terrestrial mining sector

Public participation is internationally recognized as a useful process during Environmental Impact Assessments for many activities in the extractive industry sector. It is a practice that informs the population who might be affected by the proposed activity and can influence the decision-making process for activities that are potentially harmful to the environment. Meaningful public participation in the seabed mining sector is a fundamentally important step for the licensing process for the extraction of minerals from the seafloor. The International Seabed Authority (ISA) manages this emerging industry in the international seabed (the Area), in accordance with the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which defines the Area as the common heritage of mankind. The ISA is in the process of developing a strategy for stakeholder engagement to comply with its obligations and ensure meaningful public participation. Recent developments at the ISA, including Nauru's request to finalize the exploitation regulations within two years, have made developing coherent public participation practices even more urgent before mining commences. This article looks at public participation procedures in extractive industries of several countries with robust mining regulatory regimes to identify common themes that the ISA might usefully apply. Stakeholder engagement practices in Australia, Chile, China, Indonesia, Jamaica and South Africa are studied to offer insight and common themes from a regulatory point of view that may be worth considering in the context of seabed mining in the Area.

The Effect of Perceived Risk on Public Participation Intention in Smart City Development: Evidence from China

Smart city development aims at sustainable development and high quality of urban life, which requires the participation of stakeholders. As a crucial stakeholder involved, the public’s key role has been widely concerned. However, a lack of public participation in smart city development still exists due to perceived risk. In order to solve the insufficient public participation in smart city development, this study will identify the perceived risk and explore its influential impact. After defining the concept of perceived risk, this paper constructs a theoretical model concerning the effect of perceived risk on public participation intention based on the theory of reasoned action. On the basis of 193 empirical data from China, the structural equation model is applied to test the influential impact of perceived risk on the public participation intention in smart city development. The results show that the perceived risk has a significantly negative effect on public participation intention, attitude, and subjective norms, while behavioral attitude and subjective norms have positive effects on public participation intention. According to empirical research results, the risk prevention paths and methods of public participation in smart city development are proposed so as to provide useful implications for further public participation practice in smart city development.

Towards a real-time tracking of an expanding alien bee species in Southeast Europe through citizen science and floral host monitoring

Citizen science, a practice of public participation in scientific projects, is popular in Western countries, however, it is still a relatively novel approach in Southeast Europe. In this region, citizen science can be a useful tool for increasing the understanding of alien species. One such species is the sculptured resin bee, Megachile sculpturalis, a putatively invasive alien pollinator native to East Asia. It was introduced to France in 2008, from where it quickly spread across West and Central Europe. However, our knowledge of its eastern distribution is scarce since it is based mostly on isolated findings. We combined citizen science and data extraction from online sources (e.g., naturalist’s databases and social media) covering 6 years, and 3 years of targeted floral resource monitoring in the search for M. sculpturalis across regions of southeastern Europe. We collected presence data and information on M. sculpturalis abundances across an urban-rural gradient from eight countries: Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Romania, Bulgaria, and the region of the Crimean Peninsula. We present the first country records for Romania, Bulgaria, and Montenegro, identify the dynamic expansion front in southern Serbia and provide new southernmost occurrences in Southeast Europe. We also collected data on species ecology (e.g., phenology, pollen/nectar sources, nest characteristics) and gathered evidence of reproducing populations of this species across the studied region. Citizen science data provided a five times larger spatial coverage, including recordings from remote locations, than the data collected by expert field surveys and provided critical additional data about the species biology, thanks to exceptionally engaged participants. We emphasize the importance of close collaboration between regional scientist teams and citizen participants and the benefits of this approach for monitoring a species with a continent-wide spread potential.

Between virtue and profession: Theorising the rise of professionalised public participation practitioners.

Participatory planning practice is changing in response to the rise of specially trained public participation practitioners who intersect with but are also distinct from planners. These practitioners are increasingly being professionalised through new standards of competence defined by their industry bodies. The implications of this are not well accounted for in empirical studies of participatory planning, nor in the theoretical literature that seeks to understand both the potential and problems of more deliberative approaches to urban decision-making. In this paper, we revisit the sociological literature on the professions and use it to critically interrogate an observed tension between the 'virtues' of public participation (justice, equity and democracy) and efforts to consolidate public participation practice into a distinct profession that interacts with but also sits outside of professional planning.

A democratic nuclear energy transition? Public participation in nuclear activities

AbstractGovernments, local authorities and civil society organizations are becoming increasingly vocal regarding the domestic and transboundary risks that nuclear power represents to health and the environment. While participatory rights are gaining importance in the nuclear sector, nuclear‐related activities have been at the centre of inconsistencies and uncertainties in the practice of public participation under the Aarhus and Espoo Conventions. Against this background, this article analyses the interactions between international environmental law and international nuclear law to understand how environmental democracy principles apply in the context of nuclear activities. It presents the relationship as mutually beneficial: despite inherent tensions due to the nature of nuclear activities, these interactions hold important promises to democratize the nuclear field on the one hand and strengthen environmental democracy on the other.

Effects of informal institutions on stakeholder and public participation in public infrastructure megaprojects: a case study of Shanghai

Public participation in public infrastructure megaprojects (PIMs) is ineffective, and research on the issues of informal institutions’ influence on stakeholders is limited. The present study answered how informal institutions influence the practices of public participation while conflicts occur among stakeholders. Two PIMs in China were used as case studies to investigate the effects of informal institutions. The paper suggests that the adversarial relationships among stakeholders can be reconciled by recognizing that informal institutions encompass the social responsibility of PIMs (SR-PIMs) and culture. Results also showed that effective public participation entails the fulfillment of SR-PIMs by responsible behaviors of stakeholders and the positive effect of cultural tension, enabling participatory awareness of stakeholders. This study improves understanding of how to mobilize stakeholders in practice with responsible behaviors to reach a consensus.

Specifics of value attitudes of agents of social changes

The main purpose of the article is to reveal the specifics of the value core of the attitudes which belong to the most active strata of the population. The theoretical and methodological basis of the work is the action activist approach of V. A. Yadov. The main hypothesis of the research is that the most active part of the population is characterized by achievement-oriented motivation in work, a pronounced locus of responsibility, a tendency to solidarity, and the creative essence of an individual. The research method of collecting information consisted of a mass survey of the population of the city of Cherepovets, Vologda Oblast, based on a representative quota sample in accordance with the sex and age structure of the city aged over 18. A total of 600 people were interviewed in March 2020. Scientific novelty lies in the revealing the most active social group of agents of social changes based on the practices of formal and informal social participation, as well as in the identifying the specifics of their attitudes and values. The basis for identifying the value core of the attitudes of the most active part of the population is the studies of such category as “creative class” identified in the works of R. Florida, Yu. G. Volkov, A. Yu. Maslennikov and others, as well as research on the practical measurement of motives and attitudes of civil and social participation, reflected in the works of S. V. Patrushev, V. V. Petukhov, Yu. B. Savelyev. In the second part of the article, the author proves the fact of a low level of the population’s membership in formal organizations, sufficiently developed practices of informal public participation and widely developed practices of informal support. Analysis of the responses to the indicators of identifying value attitudes among groups of the population representing different levels of social activity made it possible to mark out the main core of value orientations of agents of social changes. The author proves that among activists the motives for achievement in work are most clearly identified through the possibility of showing initiative, self-realization, independence, career prospects. Activists are characterized by such features of creativity in their everyday attitudes as the desire to do something new, even if it is associated with risks and difficulties, enjoyment of creative work. An important component of their attitude is a pronounced responsibility for what is happening in their house, surroundings; they prefer to take responsibility and initiative in solving problems. Agents of social changes are characterized by solidarity, a tendency to unite for collective actions to solve common problems.

Transboundary environmental publics and hydropower governance in the Mekong River Basin: A contested politics of place, scale and temporality

AbstractThis study proposes a conceptualisation of transboundary environmental publics (TEPs) to interrogate the distinctive pathways through which contestations over public participation and ‘stakeholder engagement’ in transboundary environmental governance have emerged. While much attention has been paid to how the discourse and practices of public participation have been co‐opted by powerful actors to serve vested interests, fewer studies have questioned how the contingent and fragmented nature of ‘publics’ entangled with a politics of representation have contributed towards the failings of public participation. This paper examines how state and nonstate TEPs have emerged as multi‐dimensional, material and discursive entities within hybrid hydropower governance arrangements in the Mekong River Basin. Public participation in relation to hydropower dams on the Mekong River's mainstream is intertwined with the contingent formation of TEPs through the Mekong River Commission's Procedures for Notification, Prior Consultation and Agreement (PNPCA). Contestations over public participation may be understood by examining the specific ways in which 1) ‘publics’ were assembled, 2) notions of ‘place’ were interpreted, 3) scalar constructions were influenced by centre‐periphery power dynamics and 4) temporality was defined. To understand how this convening of ‘publics’ fundamentally influences the potential for meaningful public participation, this paper contrasts the TEPs formed through the PNPCA and the Save the Mekong Coalition (STMC), a transnational activism network. The STMC TEP provided reimaginations of scalar constructions and broadened definitions of publics, places, and temporality in participation, reflecting how the topographical and discursive practices that underlie the creation of TEPs have important implications for their legitimacy and effectiveness in influencing decision making.

Practices of Public Participation in Local Self-Governance: Case Studies of Siberian Villages

—Rural local self-governance as an independent political institution in Russia shows clear signs of degradation. Its effectiveness and efficiency have noticeably decreased over time. A reduction in the powers and financial resources of local authorities leads to destructive phenomena and processes: the condition of rural infrastructure is deteriorating, and negative demographic trends are developing. The aim of the study is to assess how the self-organization of rural residents can resist these trends, and to identify and classify the forms of proactive participation of the rural population in local self-governance. Generalization of the sociological research results using the case study method in rural settlements of Novosibirsk Oblast and Krasnoyarsk Krai has made it possible to identify the main types of formal and informal practices of participation of local residents in initiating projects for landscaping, social support, and other local issues. It is concluded that insufficient efficiency on the part of local authorities, their poor provision of resources, and unpreparedness for dialogue with the population entail the emergence of informal types of participation of residents in village life. Informal practices can foster community cohesion and contribute not only to the preservation but also to development of rural settlements. The active involvement of the rural population in various forms of participation makes it possible to partially compensate for the defects of local self-governance and counteract negative trends in the sustenance of rural settlements.

Public participation in decision‐making on conservation translocations: the importance and limitations of a legislative framework

Conservation translocations are a frequently used management tool applied by nature conservationists. Many conservation translocations have a low success rate, which is caused by various biological and societal factors. While conservation translocations are often set in human‐dominated landscapes, they tend to be poorly embedded in social‐ecological systems. Indeed, the primacy of biological aspects in translocation processes seems to undercut attention for societal dimensions. A key societal dimension is public participation. In this article, we identified and analyzed processes that affect the implementation of public participation. In addition, we considered whether, and under which circumstances, a legislative framework enables meaningful public participation. We used a Policy Arrangement Approach to grasp the processes at play. Sixteen semi‐structured interviews were conducted with key‐actors involved in the design and planning of conservation translocations in Scotland. Interviewees argued that inclusive decision‐making was either unintentionally or deliberately neglected. Underlying causes related to regularly witnessed barriers such as traditional expert‐driven approaches, entrenched power relations, and uncertainties on how to deliver open and inclusive public participation practices. Moreover, there was a mismatch between conservationists' expectations on how public participation should be implemented and recognized fundamentals of public participation, e.g. transparency and dialogue. The results demonstrate that while a legislative framework raises awareness and provides guidance, it is unable to take away current barriers. Due to the uncertainties around democratic decision‐making, it is unrealistic to expect that a mere legislative framework alone would solve current challenges. Yet, conversely the absence of one may increase current challenges.

EFFECT OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION STRATEGIES ON ACHIEVEMENT OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN BARINGO COUNTY, KENYA

The participation of members of the public in government development programmes is enshrined in the Kenyan constitutions. The participation is not just mere appearance in project deliberations meetings but to be involved in all aspects of the project from initiation to completion. Poor achievement of sustainable development agenda in the county of Baringo has resulted to increased poverty level, increased illiteracy level, increased health risks challenges, insecurity, household income per day being below 1 USD, devastating natural occurrences (flooding of Lakes Baringo and Bogoria, famine, hunger) and poor road network access continues to be experienced. The aim of this paper was to determine the effect of public participation strategies towards achievement of sustainable development in Baringo County. The study was conducted in the six sub counties of Baringo involving sampled residents and sub county administrators. The study was anchored on concurrent triangulation design that allowed collection of quantitative and qualitative data. Data was collected through use of questionnaire and interview guide. Analysis of data has been done using descriptive, inferential statistics and thematic content analysis. The research found out that there was minimal participation of Baringo residents in development initiatives. The county government of Baringo at times shared (M=2.61, SD=1.25) information on socio-economic projects being implemented in the county on occasional basis. Correlation statistics computed showed a weak positive relationship (r=0.288) between public participation practices and sustainable development in Baringo County, Kenya. The paper concludes that public participation practices strategies were not regularly used, and this contributed to slow achievement of sustainable developmental targets in the study area. The paper recommends that if the county of Baringo is to realise its county integrated development plans goals, public participation should be the key strategy towards achievement. This means that public participation should be at the core of any sustainable development initiative and hence Baringo county government needs to be keen on this practice.
 
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