Professionalization of Participation (NL0067)

Brief Description of the Commitment

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management (IenW) aims to further develop the field of public participation in collaboration with the network of participation professionals from both within and outside the government. To achieve this, they intend to publish a new strategic knowledge agenda. The research questions outlined in the agenda will then be disseminated for further investigation. Additionally, a knowledge conference will be organized. Furthermore, the ministry will explore enhanced interdepartmental collaboration in the field of participation and develop a digital tool to assist in making design choices for participation plans.

Problem Definition

1. What problem does the commitment aim to address? • Participation is becoming an increasingly important part of the core work of civil servants, particularly within the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. In today’s world, it is almost unthinkable to develop and implement policies without involving society. When stakeholders do not feel sufficiently engaged, they often demand their involvement. • Even among policy officials themselves, there is a strong drive and desire to engage in participation, based on the belief that participation can truly improve policies. However, the question of how to organize participation effectively is not always easy to answer, as participation requires tailored approaches. International experience has shown that successful participation processes share certain common characteristics. The Knowledge Hub has identified eight success factors, such as providing stakeholders with sufficient, relevant, and accessible information to make meaningful contributions to the participation process, and providing feedback on how stakeholder input is considered and incorporated. • To further develop the field of participation, the Directorate of Participation (part of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management) established the Knowledge Hub for Participation (Kennisknooppunt Participatie) several years ago.

2. What are the causes of the problem? • Designing and implementing participation processes heavily depends on the context, which is determined by various factors such as legal, governance, social, temporal, geographical, and political variables. How to navigate these contextual factors is not always clear. Additionally, there are no universally accepted standards, methods, training programs, or approaches for (policy) officials who want to engage in participation, despite the significant demand for them. • Furthermore, the available knowledge on participation is scattered across disconnected organizations, leading to fragmentation of knowledge. This is due to a lack of coordination in an emerging and rapidly growing feld. One major concern regarding fragmentation is the collaboration between theory and practice. The scientific community already possesses considerable knowledge about successful participation, but this knowledge has limited reach in the practical work of participation professionals. Conversely, participation professionals have valuable practical experience and case studies that are often not systematically documented and scientifically researched. • Although participation is clearly its own field of expertise, it is still in its early stages as of 2023. Developing and professionalizing this field is necessary to better design and implement participation in the future. Bridging the gap between theory and practice of participation can play a crucial role in this process.

Commitment Description

1. What has been done so far to solve the problem? • In 2021, the Knowledge Hub for Participation (Kennisknooppunt Participatie) developed the first national knowledge agenda. The knowledge agenda was created through discussions with various research and knowledge institutions to address the current developments in the field of participation. The objectives of the knowledge agenda are: - To identify and prioritize urgent knowledge gaps for investigation. - To conduct fundamental practice-oriented research and encourage applied practice-oriented research while providing guidance. - To stimulate interaction between research and practice. - To strengthen the existing participation knowledge network. • The 2021 knowledge agenda highlights five research themes. Based on these themes, various studies have been conducted, such as research on guidelines for successful participation. In early 2023, the Knowledge Hub, in collaboration with several other parties, organized a networking event called “Participation Research & Practice” (Participatie Onderzoek & Praktijk or POP). The purpose of this event was to bring together participation professionals from research and practice to share state-of-the-art insights. This event generated new research questions that can be used to update the 2021 knowledge agenda. • Additionally, participation is rapidly gaining attention on the political agenda. Recently, the government presented a plan for strengthening citizen participation and citizen fora (at the national level) in a letter to the Dutch Parliament. This letter was sent on behalf of the Ministry of the Interior and other departments, including IenW (Infrastructure and Water Management) and EZK (Economic Affairs and Climate). One aspect of this plan is learning from practical experiences and actively conducting research, such as research on citizen fora.

2. What solution are you proposing? • Based on the experiences with the first knowledge agenda, the “Praktijk Onderzoek Participatie” (POP) event in spring 2023, and the input from participation professionals within the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, the Knowledge Hub intends to publish an updated knowledge agenda in the autumn of 2023. • The issues addressed in this updated knowledge agenda will serve as input for new (practice-oriented) research on participation. To ensure the ongoing relevance of the knowledge agenda, the Knowledge Hub plans to organize another POP event in 2024. This will help keep the knowledge agenda up-to-date and aligned with future needs and developments. 3. What results do we want to achieve by implementing this commitment? • The new knowledge agenda and network event provide strategic guidance for the development of the field of participation and align with the government’s ambition to actively develop, gather, and share knowledge and good examples. The new knowledge agenda focuses on current developments related to participation in the physical domain, including themes such as housing, spatial planning, environmental and climate policies, water management, agriculture, nature, food quality, transportation, and spatial-economic development. • Based on the new knowledge agenda, we aim to foster the emergence of various new research projects within the network or initiate them ourselves when necessary. Research outcomes can lead to practical knowledge products, such as guidelines, animations, podcasts, and more. • Ultimately, our efforts contribute to the development of the feld, the training of participation professionals, and the empowerment of civil servants who engage in participation for their policy challenges. The intended outcome is an improvement in the quality of participation, resulting in better (implementable) policies for society.

Commitment Analysis

1. How will the commitment promote transparency? By publishing a public knowledge agenda and organizing a widely accessible POP event, the Knowledge Hub for Participation helps to improve the quality and diligence of participation processes. We also transparently address areas for improvement and acknowledge what has not worked in the field of participation in the knowledge agenda. Furthermore, we outline our plans for improvement in the knowledge agenda. Additionally, citizens (and other interested parties) can send questions, ideas, and/or comments about the content and further development of the national knowledge agenda through the website of the Knowledge Hub for Participation.

2. How will the commitment help foster accountability? The knowledge agenda serves as a foundation for the development of products by the Knowledge Hub for Participation and for the knowledge network within and outside the government. The new research and practical guidelines developed by the Knowledge Hub can be traced back to the research questions formulated in the knowledge agenda. Additionally, a periodic POP event can provide an opportunity for refective evaluation of the implementation of the knowledge agenda and update it as necessary.

3. How will the commitment improve citizen participation in defining, implementing, and monitoring solutions? The ultimate goal of a knowledge agenda, as well as the network event, is to improve participatory practices. The research questions in the knowledge agenda lead to new guidelines and other knowledge products, which ultimately enhance the expertise of civil servants and help improve the quality of (public) participation processes.

Commitment Planning (Milestones | Expected Outputs | Expected Completion Date)

Developing a new strategic knowledge agenda for the field of participation. | The (strategic) participation knowledge agenda 2023, which serves as a foundation for the development of the products of the Knowledge Hub. | 1-10-2023

Organizing a second network meeting ('POP2') to set out follow-up actions together with the network of governments, knowledge institutions, and practical professionals from NGOs, citizen initiatives, consulting firms, etc. | A report on the POP2 meeting. | 1-11-2024

Exploring more intensive interdepartmental collaboration in the field of participation. | A report on the exploration. | 1-11-2024

Designing an online participation guide for national-level participation. | A digital tool that assists policy officials and other professionals within the national government in making design choices for participation plans. | 1-11-2024