You’re bang on about the need to improve citize engagement, both on voting day and especially between elections. The PPF is currently doing work in this area: we’re putting together a public engagement program built around a new model of public engagement that’s been developed by one of our senior associates named Dr. Don Lenihan. We’re trying to reach out to people interested in public engagement to share these ideas, learn from others, and build a public engagement network/community across North Amercia and internationally.

Don’s been developing his ideas for over a decade. He’s currently the advisor for public engagement to the Premier of New Brunswick and is currently running several pilot projects in the province to test his model. In a nutshell, the model is the most comprehensive and robust framework for engaging the public that I’ve come across. It provides a means to determine why engagement is necessary, how engaged the public needs to be, how to determine governments role, who to engage, and finally the process of engaging.

Don and I have done a number of workshops across Canada for public servants and the response has been nothing short of phenomenal. We’ll be doing more workshops in the New Year in Canada and the US. In May, the New Brunswick pilot projects will wrap up with a large conference, at which time Don will present his report and the Premier will announce the model as official policy for the entire public service in the province.

The response we’ve got in speaking to government officials and those who interact with them is that the current way of doing things has got to change. The policy universe has become too complex and government resources too constrained. At least in Canada, there’s a worrying tendency for governments to react by tightening the reins in an attempt to centralize control. Technology, used inappropriately, could exacerbate this. On the other hand, if used to support a new way of engaging, technology offers a means to strengthen democracy. Not to overstate it, but we’re at a juncture where things could go either way. This is why the PPF is reaching out to others in the hopes of building a network.

Anyway, I’d love to speak further with you about engaging citizens and the public. I’m especially curious to learn more about your work on behalf of Jim Amann in CT and other initiatives in the US. Feel free to email me at john.macaulay@ppforum.ca. I look forward to hearing form you.

1. Do away with electronic voting machines, especially any that do not produce immediate paper ballots. Electronic devices are just too easy to hack.

2. Very long lines for voters in certain districts and systematic harassment of certain classes of voters should be eliminated forcefully, by a measure similar to the 1965 Voting Rights Act.