Rethinking Public Engagement Resources

Political polarization is the leading social rift of our time and won't be an easy problem to solve, but there is a science-backed method that can help to bridge political divides. We've partnered with Constructive Dialogue Institute to bring you Perspectives, an online program that helps teams create the best ideas across divides to develop public finance solutions greater than the sum of their parts. 

This draft explores how to rethink public engagement and design principles for better engagement. We encourage summit participants to reach the draft research and provide feedback to GFOA.

Balancing Act provides award-winning tools for simulation-based public engagement tools for government.

The National Civic League's Civic Index is a tool to help communities of all sizes measure their civic capital– the formal and informal relationships, networks and capacities that enable communities to solve problems and thrive. Use the Civic Index with gatherings of community members, partner organizations, or government staff to spark conversation about community strengths and areas in need of improvement. Email ncl@ncl.org if you would like advice on how to use the Civic Index in your community.

Ethelo is one of the world's leading digital democracy platforms, and has been used by hundreds of local governments to engage their communities in major budgeting, policy and planning decisions. More than $10B has been allocated using Ethelo. For more information contact john@ethelo.com.

The Kettering Foundation is a nonprofit operating foundation rooted in the American tradition of cooperative research. Kettering’s primary research question is, what does it take to make democracy work as it should? Kettering’s research is distinctive because it is conducted from the perspective of citizens and focuses on what people can do collectively to address problems affecting their lives, their communities, and their nation.

Open Source Politics is a civic technology leader in the field of digital participatory democracy. Founded in 2016, OSP is specialized in the SaaS hosting of the fully open source participatory platform Decidim, as well as in the consulting of local governments, national and

PSi helps organizations host online meetings with citizens, customers, and employees. During PSi discussions, you can collect massive-scale qualitative and quantitative data. PSi rethinks public engagement by engaging stakeholders in live, easy-to-schedule conversations that generate actionable insights. The PSi dashboard collects analytics (what people think, feel, and want) so you can tap into your stakeholders’ collective intelligence. Our customers include the Mayor of London’s Office and Merck. To see a demo or to get more information, please contact the team at founders@thepsiapp.com.

RadicalxChange Foundation is a nonprofit focused on innovation in the fundamental institutions of democracy and markets. We help local governments break new ground with citizen engagement, land use, infrastructure governance, and more. Reach out to matt@radicalxchange.org to learn more or click the link below.

The Opportunity Accelerator is a new initiative to support governments in their efforts to promote economic mobility and reduce racial disparities in their communities. Led by Results for America, in collaboration with the Center for Government Excellence at Johns Hopkins University, Code for America, the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab, and the W. Haywood Burns Institute, the OA works with government to build its capacity to collaborate with community partners and directly with residents to identify barriers to economic mobility, co-design programs and solutions, and ensure those programs and solutions deliver on outcomes that ultimately increase community wellbeing. 

What Works Cities Certification provides cities at all points in their data journey with a standard of excellence that shows how investing in data and evidence can lead to better and more equitable results for residents. Start by taking a data self-assessment to benchmark your progress, get a roadmap for improvement and join the WWC Community to receive exclusive resources, training, and a one-of-a-kind peer learning space. Email certification@whatworkscities.org with any questions.

Looking to inspire citizen engagement? The Village Square offers a programming library with 100's of creative ideas on how to draw interest and participation while taking on the important issues of the day. Offerings include templates for annual town hall meetings with elected officials, innovative ways for citizens and elected leaders to engage and highly successful community-wide conversations on race. The first five participants in the Rethinking Public Engagement summit to contact us get a one hour consultation on how your hometown can support more participation.