Yesterday, an unprecedented attack on our nation’s capitol left many of us shocked, saddened, and discouraged. How could this be real? A violent mob forcefully took control of the legislative chambers of the world’s most powerful democracy. Former president George W. Bush summed up the shock succinctly by saying, “This is how election results are...
You work hard to make sure your public engagement efforts are equitable. Before your project's public participation outreach begins, you try to anticipate the needs of your community. Where should your limited resources go, and what would be most beneficial to your residents? During your project, you take the steps to make your outreach equitable....
The National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) — a pillar of environmental law that has undergone little reform since its creation 50 years ago — saw major rollbacks this summer after proposed changes were finalized by The Council of Environmental Quality (CEQ). REGISTER HERE After reading the 194 page document, here’s what you need to know...
Mixed-mode surveying — using a variety of traditional and virtual tactics — is a proven public engagement best practice. Now, in light of COVID-19, government organizations have been put in the challenging position of “going completely virtual”. The biggest challenge? Taking in-person meetings online. Virtual public meetings created new virtual hurdles, with off-the-shelf solutions and...
Virtual public meetings are not easy. There, we said it. Despite any claim to the contrary from conferencing software companies, it's important to recognize that hosting virtual public meetings come with a learning curve for a number of reasons: You're trying to organize real-time interactions between dozens (if not hundreds) of people Attendees are joining...
A non-exhaustive sample of state guidance on virtual public meetings Below we've assembled policy guidance issued by a number of states on holding open public meetings during the COVID-19 crisis. While it is by no means intended to be an exhaustive list, it does provide illustrative examples of what constitutes legally-compliant virtual public meetings. In...
Nationwide, agencies are transitioning to virtual meetings and many are left with guesswork when it comes to implementing best practices. Online public meetings require the same attention to detail as in-person meetings, and it’s important to understand and manage the expectations for participating residents. Regardless of your meeting topic, there are some universal best practices that...
In light of the recent FBI warning against publicly sharing video conference service links, we've received an influx of questions about hosting public meetings virtually. These concerns reflect the nature of our rapidly-changing environment. Just two weeks ago, most organizations were just beginning to discuss what to do about public meetings. Now an entire wave...
