Traditional engagement has advantages that will never grow obsolete. Even for tech-savvy citizens, real live public meetings, events, and workshops hold the value of the human touch. Face-to-face…

When it came time to engage citizens in a recent Master Planning process, the City of Lowell, Massachusetts opted for an unorthodox approach: an interactive online game. In order to engage a…

When it comes to online conversations and forums, the role of the facilitator has become essential in supporting a participatory process. But how has the role of the facilitator evolved with the…

Social media and new technologies can bring new ways for communities to interact. Yet the growth in online technologies is a fast moving picture with potentially good and bad outcomes. In recent…

The City of Christchurch, New Zealand was devastated by a series of earthquakes. The largest, on the 4 September 2010 wrecked havoc in the central city, but the second quake on 22 February killed…

At some point in time, planners might have had the option to create their plans without including the public and to simply present the final product at a workshop. And we know how that goes, duck…

Storytelling has long been used to connect people to each other and to celebrate the past, but a handful of communities today see storytelling as the way to a better future. The three communities…

As planners, architects, and passionate urbanists, we regularly ponder new ways to engage the public and get them motivated to be involved in planning projects. Besides the new tools for public…

Many municipalities across the country have been exploring recent Gov2.0 tools, including “ideation” platforms, in hopes of finding ways to help combat common issues of towns losing money, property…

In small towns, citizens can attend town hall meetings, and vote directly on major changes to the community, while in larger cities, allowing every resident to have a voice in shaping his…