Three Pathways to More Meaningful Public Participation

OGP’s new strategy challenges us to raise the bar for open government. The transparency reforms of the last decade were a useful first step, but now we need to transition from transparency to inclusive and meaningful participation. In September, the open government community will gather in Estonia to accelerate this transition.

My organization, People Powered, was formed in 2020 to serve as a global hub for participatory democracy – the direct participation of community members in making the decisions that affect their lives. We aim to expand people’s power to make government decisions, by addressing a few common challenges that are holding back open and participatory government around the world: 

• There are lots of reports, but not enough accessible and relevant guidance.
• There are good conferences, but not enough support for solving problems afterward. 
• There are amazing local champions, but their work does not align around shared goals.
• There are regions where these challenges are greater, including Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America.

In the past three years, we have addressed these challenges by building a global community of practice along with shared resources and support programs. Here are three paths forward that we have identified, and examples of how People Powered has been charting these paths with OGP. We will explore these new directions in several sessions at the Summit.

1. Synthesize existing knowledge

While most research and advocacy focuses on creating new guides and reports, we have more to gain from synthesizing what’s already out there. We know so much already about how to build open and participatory government, but this knowledge is not evenly or accessibly distributed. How do we get the right knowledge in the hands of the right people at the right time in the right way?

One example is a new resource that People Powered has developed with dozens of OGP members and staff – the Participation Playbook. This interactive online tool synthesizes global knowledge on participation and makes it widely available in an accessible format. It walks you through the key design questions for planning a participatory program, such as participatory budgeting or a citizens’ assembly, providing just-in-time information, data, and options each step of the way.

Hundreds of government reformers have been testing and revising the beta version for the past year, and in September, we will launch the Playbook publicly. For now, the website only has general information about the Playbook, you can sign up here to get a notification when it launches. We hope that the OGP Global Summit generates new design guidance that we can then integrate into the Playbook.

2. Make it easier for reformers to connect with the right experts

Even when we have access to the right knowledge, we need help applying this knowledge. Sometimes we just want to talk with another human who has done what we’re trying to do and can help us figure out how to do it. Conferences like the OGP Summit are a great way to find this help. But how do we make and sustain these connections when we’re not at conferences? How do we make it easier for government reformers to connect with the right experts?

At People Powered, our members vote each year to decide our programs and budget, and one of their first priorities was a global mentorship program. The Rising Stars mentorship program matches advocates, civil servants, and policymakers seeking guidance (mentees) to experts who can address key questions (mentors). We select mentors from all around the world, so people can connect with experts that are from their region and speak their language.

3. Use participation to solve big public problems

If you’re reading this blog post, you probably love open government and participation. But most people aren’t like you. They’re more likely to care about other issues, like climate change, public safety, or artificial intelligence. How do we get more people to see open government as a tool for solving their most pressing problems? And how can we best use participation to address our biggest societal challenges?

One approach is to offer targeted help, focused on specific issues. People Powered and OGP are currently running two accelerator programs to test this strategy. The Climate Democracy Accelerator helps governments engage community members in deciding how to respond to the climate crisis. The Digital Democracy Accelerator helps engage people in deciding policies that govern data, AI, and technology. Both programs provide mentorship, training, peer support, and funding to help you create and implement an action planAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen... for a new focused participatory program. At the Summit we will explore how participation can address these and other public problems, such as polarization and public safety.

We invite the OGP community to use and build on these accelerator programs, mentorship, and the Participation Playbook – please get in touch. I look forward to seeing you in Tallinn to explore new ideas and build together!