The Public Participation Handbook

Internationally renowned facilitator and public participation consultant James L. Creighton offers a practical guide to designing and facilitating public participation of the public in environmental and public policy decision making. Written for government officials, public and community leaders, and professional facilitators, The Public Participation Handbook is a toolkit for designing a participation process, selecting techniques to encourage participation, facilitating successful public meetings, working with the media, and evaluating the program.  The book is also filled with practical advice, checklists, worksheets, and illustrative examples.

Tables, Figures, Exhibits, and Worksheets xiii Preface xv The Author xix Introduction 1 PART ONE: OVERVIEW OF PUBLIC PARTICIPATION 5 2 The Rationale for Public Participation 14 PART TWO: DESIGNING A PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PROGRAM 27 3 Decision Analysis 29 4 Process Planning 45 5 Implementation Planning 78 PART THREE: PUBLIC PARTICIPATION TOOL KIT 85 6 Techniques for Getting Information to the Public 89 7 Techniques for Getting Information from the Public 102 PART FOUR: PUBLIC MEETING TOOLS 139 8 Designing Public Meetings 143 9 Developing Interactive Meetings 149 10 Facilitating Public Meetings 166 11 Determining Meeting Logistics 173 PART FIVE: GENERAL-PURPOSE TOOLS 181 12 Working with Advisory Groups 183 13 Conducting Interviews 190 14 Working with the Media 196 15 Analyzing Public Comment 205 16 Evaluating Public Participation 214 17 Using Public Participation Consultants 223 PART SIX: PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN ACTION 227 18 Public Participation Cases 229 Conclusion 243 An Example: Sunny Glen Landfill Siting Public Participation Plan 247 Index 255