Headline: Getting Citizen Participation Right – Handbook Highlights Best Practice

Citizen participation has become part and parcel of the development of public works. But participation processes aren’t always plain sailing: civil society actors frequently complain that decision-makers are slow to respond to protests and only change their plans when they are forced to bow to public pressure. Politicians, on the other hand, criticise citizens for not making use of opportunities for participation until projects are well advanced. So what does it take to ensure the success of citizen participation? Ortwin Renn, scientific director at the IASS, offers some answers to this question in a new book co-edited with Christina Benighaus and Gisela Wachinger from Stuttgart University.

The three editors have extensive experience in participation practice. In Bürgerbeteiligung – Konzepte und Lösungswege für die Praxis [Citizen Participation – Concepts and Best Practices] they highlight the pros and cons of a variety of participation models and show how they can be applied to meet the needs of different situations. Drawing on twenty-two case studies, ranging from the establishment of a hostel for refugees to the realisation of conservation projects and the planning of a district hospital, the publication shows where, when, and how citizen participation can make a difference.

Bürgerbeteiligung – Konzepte und Lösungswege für die Praxis is a useful guidebook for anyone intending to initiate, design, or carry out a participation process – and for anyone who just wants to understand how participation works. The book promises to be a valuable resource for municipal administrators and leaders, citizen-led initiatives, public associations and societies, members of public committees, and anyone involved in citizen participation processes – including organisers, participants, and public stakeholders.

Reviews

"This book shows both how to make a success of citizen participation and how and why things can go wrong. The editors’ extensive experience in the design and implementation of participation processes makes this book a valuable guide to successful citizen participation. Featuring a good combination of practical examples, theoretical concepts, typologies, and comparisons."
Professor Hans-Liudger Dienel, nexus Institute Berlin and TU Berlin (Chair of Labour, Technology, and Participation)

“Covering a broad range of topics and numerous approaches, the authors show how diverse civic participation has become. No longer a niche issue in the planning of infrastructure projects, civic participation is now a part of our democracy. This book will support efforts to transfer knowledge into practice and to ensure its lasting impact.”
Gisela Erler, State Counsellor for Civil Society and Civic Participation in the State Ministry of Baden-Württemberg


Christina Benighaus, Gisela Wachinger, Ortwin Renn: Bürgerbeteiligung. Konzepte und Lösungswege für die Praxis. Wolfgang Metzner Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, 2016.