A new way for civic engagement
The Chicago Public Meeting Method is a rigorous set of practices for civic engagement that brings together mass information, economic development, and digital skills to foster transparent, accountable, collective decision-making. The principles are as follows:
Everyone means everyone. We seek to gather and act on individual needs, opinions, and preferences. This means we develop and maintain systems that prioritize the collection of the widest aperture of voice rather than fetishizing dyads of controversy. It means we respect and invite community-based organizations and intermediaries, but our focus is on lifting up voices that are unaggregated. It also means that we have a wider view of place— rather than construe issues in the tight strictures of ward boundaries or express features & benefits in terms of the edges of our city, we look at the entire economic and social impact of our decisions. We understand that in Chicago place is often determinant, so we’re mindful that meetings need to be held in places & spaces that reflect this wider view, hold as many people who want to show up, and has ways for people with limitations (time, mobility, finance, abilities) to meaningfully contribute.
The system matters. With the emphasis on individual voice, we are oriented toward institutions that carry out the will of the people. That means we respect ordinances, and statutes, and laws that govern the topics of discussion. It means that rather than disdaining them, and lamenting how they seem to limit innovation and progress, we approach them with realism, and seek to change them to better do our work. It also means that we do our meetings in the context of existing power structures, always leveling with people about how much impact they can have on any given matter. We should actively use city services (311 system, for example) in meetings— get things done, in the context of the institutions, rather than just talk.
Sharing is caring. In creating this method, we seek to serve Chicago. That means we have to incorporate best practices, local customs, and ways of doing things into our work. The Chicago Public Meetings Method has to be ours— all of ours— in order to be of use. It also means that we will make it easy to do the method wherever you are— with content and tools that are easily accessible, not overly reliant on technology, and coherent in common languages we share. Though the focus is Chicago, we should seek to encourage use of the method everywhere.
Rules with tolerance. This method starts with a clear set of principles and a robust collection of well-defined practices, but collaboration and iterative development is at the core. That means that the method will evolve as we research best practices, engage with elected officials, test how the practices are accepted by the public, and implement in the context of ordinances and other municipal requirements. The development of the method is essential to its practice. Rigidity is not a virtue. This also means that we adopt and enforce a code of conduct that respects all.
Documentation is life. Very often people engage in robust civic engagement and the results of the shared work is never published. Or the results are aggregated into reports typed after the fact by think tanks or other intermediaries. The method relies on the direct results of civic engagement being published, in as close to real time as is practical, so that people can see themselves in the process and feel themselves being heard. That does not mean that results are not filtered and considered in context, it simply means that all voices are physically represented in that consideration. Lastly, in order to have effective documentation, it has to be accepted by and generated by the people. Therefore, we value compensating people to create documentation and we believe in taking the time and resources necessary for training.
DXO
4/25/2019