People Centered Planning

Growing up in the oldest part of Kansas City, I saw how the lack of community engagement and poor planning can divide a city and breakup tightly knit neighborhoods. A perfect example is Strawberry Hill. In1957, one-third of this historic neighborhood was bulldozed and the streetcar rails that transported people from Kansas City, Kansas, and Missouri on what was once called the Intercity Viaduct were ripped up after President Eisenhower signed the Federal Aid Highway Act into law and Interstate 70 was built. The deterioration of this tightly woven community, where my great-grandparents rooted themselves after immigrating from Croatia, was a rude awakening to the American Dream that they and many others worked hard to envision and build. Over time, other socio-economic factors contributed to the relocation of wealth to the sprawling suburbs. Planning projects often have dramatic impacts in the present and vast implications for the future, so it is essential to unearth as many considerations as possible early in the process to produce the most favorable outcomes. To develop a thoughtful approach to planning and community engagement, one must turn to the experts and connect to the breadth of knowledge available through similar boots on the ground. In a former role with my local city government, I learned about the premier professional organization – the International Association of Public Participation (IAP2), which guides practitioners in engaging public input to solve problems and make decisions effectively. This organization is recognized worldwide and active in Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Latin America, South Africa, and the USA.IAP2 USA leads, advances, and advocates for best practices in public participation. As members, we have access to resources through webinars, conferences, training, research, and mentorship with a community of more than 2,500 members across 48 states. The organization’s three pillars—its Core Values, Code of Ethics, and Spectrum of Public Participation—drive its mission and vision, which is “a country where public participation is deeply embedded and widely applied, and where equitable, efficient, and informed decision-making processes improve the quality of our democracy.” IAP2 principles are based on the belief that those affected by a decision have a right to be involved in the decision-making process.

Good public participation should:

• Include the promise that the public’s contribution will influence the decision.

• Promote sustainable decisions by recognizing and communicating the needs and interests of all participants, including decision-makers.

• Seek out and facilitate the involvement of those potentially affected by or interested in a decision.

• Seek input from participants in designing how they participate.• Provide participants with the information they need to participate meaningfully.

• Communicate to participants how their input affected the decision. [1]

Spectrum of Public Participation is widely utilized to determine levels of engagement for the public and all stakeholder groups, establishing expectations and limitations, transparency, and accountability. Recently, IAP2gathered feedback from practitioners around the globe who use this tool in hopes of improving it iteratively. I am excited to see the evolution of this tool and thrilled to be part of a network with high aims for societies worldwide, working together toward the greater good. Within the US, approximately fifteen established and emerging chapters, including the Midwest Chapter, provide more localized support for practitioners in that part of the country. I am honored to have been recently elected to serve on the Board of Directors for the Midwest Chapter. This position will springboard my efforts to establish an even more localized network of practitioners in Kansas and our metropolitan areas, using the connections I made last year at the IAP2 Midwest Conference. People-Centered Planning: Elevating Voices, Shaping Places - Continued. This spring, the Midwest Chapter will host its annual conference in Omaha, Nebraska, from April 23 – 25, with the theme “Weaving vibrant networks that energize engagement.” Learn more and register soon at the conference website: https://iap2usa.org/Midwest-Conference.Planners could benefit by attending this conference to learn about other regional projects where practitioners utilize tools and techniques from IAP2 to deliver successful outcomes. Engaging the public, even at the inform level, to help understand a problem, alternatives, opportunities, and solutions – necessitates the promise of keeping those who are impacted abreast of the project and implications as it unfolds. Challenges that make outreach to affected parties no small feat range from the determined scope of community engagement (time, money, authority) to the variety of communication platforms (websites, social media, television, email, post, texting, phone calls) that must be used to access diverse populations, all with barriers of identity.

Furthermore, there are non-negotiables, with the governing body as the ultimate decision-maker. Tensions between a less informed realm of public opinion and experts in public and private sectors must be managed, and the IAP2 community and wealth of knowledge are invaluable for practitioners tasked with bridging the gap. As a Community Engagement Specialist with JEO Consulting Group, I am committed to this work because we are all inherently connected and often face increasingly complex problems that transcend boundaries. To some degree, we all feel the effects of climate change, rely on energy and goods in a global economy, and are affected by decisions made in the public realm. I am energized that the Strawberry Hill community where I grew up is making a comeback, along with the more recent revitalizations that have taken place in downtown Kansas City, MO. Recognizing the industrious force of immigrants working toward their own experience of the American Dream is a history that continues to enrich this place. There is even a KC Streetcar expansion project underway! Ultimately, better processes can potentially rebuild the public’s trust in government and urban planning where it has been broken. I am grateful for IAP2 as a source of inspiration and professionalism. As we look to the future, remember that the best decisions are made when the voices of those impacted most are included.

1  About IAP2 USA https://iap2usa.org/aboutIAP2The