2011 Community Involvement Training Conference
Community Involvement in the 21st Century: Embracing Diversity, Expanding Engagement, Utilizing Technology
These sessions are from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) 12th Community Involvement Training Conference that was held July 19-21, 2011, at the Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel in Arlington, Virginia. This dynamic conference brought together more than 450 people from EPA and its federal, state, tribal, and local partners who plan and implement environmental community involvement, partnership, stewardship, outreach, and education programs. The theme for the 2011 conference was, "Community Involvement in the 21st Century: Embracing Diversity, Expanding Engagement, Utilizing Technology". Through this theme, we not only wanted to showcase community involvement as it is, but how it is evolving, and what steps may be taken to expand its effectiveness through both existing and new technologies and techniques.
Note: Please keep in mind that the streamed sessions were conducted as a beta test of the Adobe Connect streaming technology and as a result, some of the video/sound quality is not optimal. If you have any questions about the conference or these sessions, please contact Laura Knudsen (2011 Conference Chair) at knudsen.laura@epa.gov. Thank you!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
-
CARE - A Model for Community-Based Environmental Problem Solving
Presenters: Michael Wenstrom and Marva King, U.S. EPA; and Charlie Chase, University of Colorado
Topic Area: Expanding Engagement Level: Intermediate
This session will describe results achieved by EPA's Community Action for a Renewed Environment (CARE) grant program in community-based research. You will learn from the experience of more than 70 communities how the CARE model has helped them to understand and change their environment. Using the CARE experience, we will show you how to effectively form local partnerships, conduct research, and implement solutions to reduce neighborhood pollution.
The Agency created this innovative grant program to assist a community as it determines for itself what environmental problems are present and important. CARE helps a community, financially and technically, assess its environmental and public health issues and works to resolve the issues identified through management by a local organization or department. Thus far, CARE has funded more than 90 projects across the nation to engage in this process, reaching 10 to 20 new communities annually.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download CARE Presentation (PDF) (29 pp, 2.42MB)
Download The CARE Roadmap Handout (PDF) (20 pp, 3.31MB) -
Creating, Collecting, and Telling Our Stories: Tools for Multi-Stakeholder Engagement
Presenters: Ogonnaya Dotson-Newman, WE ACT for Environmental Justice; and Judy Hatcher, Environmental Support Center
Topic Area: Expanding Engagement Level: Intermediate
You do not have to be a scientist or a researcher to find and use statistical information about your community. Harlem's WE ACT for Environmental Justice created an "Environmental Health Report Card" as a tool for advocacy and organizing. The Report Card combines health surveys, data from city, state, and national agencies, and common sense. In this session, we will examine how WE ACT developed and uses the Report Card, and look at ways other community groups around the country are using surveys, GIS, and related tools in their environmental work. We will also explore what resources are out there to help you get started, and what skills you might need to use these types of tools.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download Tools for Multi-Stakeholder Engagement Presentation (PDF) (5pp, 356KB)
Download Tools for Multi-Stakeholder Engagement Handout (PDF) (6pp, 0.10MB) -
Expanding Engagement in Large Public Comment/Listening Forums
Presenters: Adam Saslow and Nora Chiong, Plexus Logistics International; and Curt Gervich, State University of New York, College at Plattsburgh
Topic Area: Expanding Engagement Level: Intermediate
In recent months, EPA has convened several large, highly contested, and visible public comment/listening sessions. Public comment sessions regarding the issuance of a mountaintop removal permit at the Spruce #1 mine in West Virginia, as well as a national series of listening sessions on the design of a hydraulic fracturing research study, serve as examples of these forums. Each comment/listening session involved between 500 and 1,500 people. Attendees held diverse opinions and perspectives at the core-value levels and all participants were committed and passionate.
Our team of facilitators was responsible for designing and guiding these sessions. This workshop presents our lessons learned from this experience. During our presentation, we will discuss the unique challenges associated with holding large forums and managing dialogue when the topics are highly charged and the interests polarized. Key challenges included: managing participants' expectations; early communication with EPA and stakeholder groups; overcoming public perceptions; creating a safe environment where all perspectives can be shared; logistics management; and safety and security. In addition to presenting what we learned from coordinating these sessions, our presentation will identify best practices and new models for carrying out large, hotly contested comment/listening events in the future. Our goals are to make these events more effective at expanding engagement in EPA's decision-making processes and meeting the needs of stakeholders, the Agency, and the natural environment.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download Expanding Engagement Presentation (PDF) (5pp, 0.33MB)
Download Expanding Engagement Handout (PDF) (2pp, 0.81MB) -
State of the Practice and Planning: The 2011 Public Participation Summit
Presenters: Doug Sarno, Forum Facilitation Group, LLC; and James Creighton, Creighton & Creighton, Inc.
Topic Area: Expanding Engagement Level: Intermediate
As we end the first decade of the 21st century, the practice of public participation has been undergoing significant changes: adjusting to changing social conditions, responding to political realities, and incorporating a wide range of exciting new technologies. The new U.S. affiliate of the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) is planning a summit of senior P2 professionals in the fall of 2011 to explore how the Obama Administration's P2 Initiatives have been carried out, assess progress, and design improved processes for moving forward. EPA has been at the forefront of the Administration's current participation initiative. As the CIC, we will present some of the latest trends and activities in P2 gathered from practitioners throughout the federal government and discuss how they have been implemented and the results to date. Audience members will participate in an interactive dialogue to explore how the Administration's initiatives have changed public participation within EPA. Focus will be placed on the range of activities and tools being used, the intensity of participation, and, specifically, the outcomes and influence of public input on decisions and actions of the Agency. Participants will help identify important needs in making positive improvements in public participation. The results of this workshop will help shape the planned summit meeting.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download 2011 Public Participation Summit Presentation (PDF) (16 pp, 0.65MB)
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
-
Wednesday Morning Plenary Session
This plenary included a panel session, moderated by Bruce Engelbert, to assess the state of "One EPA" in terms of community engagement across EPA. The panel discussion specifically showcased current efforts of several EPA program offices including, the Office of Air and Radiation (OAR), the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA), the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER), and the Office of Water (OW). Panel members included:
- Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator, Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, U.S. EPA
- Mathy Stanislaus, Assistant Administrator, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, U.S. EPA
- Nancy Stoner, Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Water, U.S. EPA
- Joseph Goffman, Senior Counsel, Office of Air and Radiation, U.S. EPA
Each panelist briefly summarized the progress their office and the Agency are making toward "One EPA" in terms of community engagement. After hearing from each program official, the panelists answered questions from the audience.
-
Community Engagement in Breaking the Cycle of Environmental Health Disparities
Presenters: I. Leslie Rubin, SE PEHSU at Emory University; Pamela Maxson, Children's Environmental Health InitiativeAaron Hilliard, Duval County Health Dept.; and David Wood, UF College of Medicine-JacksonvilleGretchen Kroeger, Children's Environmental Health Initiative
Topic Area: Expanding Engagement Level: IntermediateThis session focuses on community engagement to improve our understanding of the concept of the Cycle of Environmental Health Disparities by researching the environmental factors that adversely affect health and developing strategies to provide information, education, and empowerment to the community to improve the health and well-being of children and their families. This session offers three different models from health centers in three states, each with a program that demonstrates the process for developing an understanding of the factors involved in creating environmental health disparities or inequalities and how the goals of reducing these inequalities can be achieved. The session demonstrates how actively involving the community in the process of planning, designing, and executing programs can increase overall community awareness, empower the members of the community to become involved in the solution, and cultivate a leadership that is informed, receptive, and forward-thinking. The models include an understanding and appreciation of the "built environment" (human-made surroundings) and how factors in the "built environment" can adversely affect health, particularly in the areas of pregnancy outcomes (prematurity and low birth weight) and health indicators (obesity and asthma). Other models look at the challenges of communities living on or near Superfund sites where toxic waste from industrial pollution, directly or indirectly, has affected the health of underserved, low-income, vulnerable communities that are predominantly represented by minority populations.
Download Community Engagement Presentation (PDF) (38 pp, 2.15MB)
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window) -
Engaging Diverse Communities Through Mediation: Superfund on Tribal Lands and Environmental Justice
Presenters: Anna Abbey, U.S. EPA; and Teresa Michelsen, Mediation Solutions
Topic Area: Embracing Diversity Level: IntermediateMediation and facilitation are excellent tools in bringing people together to ease tensions, build trust, and help move all parties toward resolution. This can be especially helpful when working with Tribal and environmental justice communities that often are dealing with intense environmental issues and a long history of mistrust and neglect. This presentation will look at the use of mediation to engage diverse communities and examine its use in depth through the results of the report, "Superfund on Tribal Lands: Issues, Challenges and Solutions." The study was done in late 2010, by the Conflict Prevention and Resolution Center, on seven Superfund sites where at least one tribe had substantial involvement and a mediation process was carried out. We will review the results, and look at the issues that were most important to the tribes interviewed, where tension commonly arose, and how mediation was used to improve engagement.
In addition, we will explore the use of mediation/facilitation in a broader environmental justice context, share available EPA resources, and engage the participants in thinking about next steps through small group and plenary discussions.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download Engaging Diverse Communities Presentation (PDF) (11 pp, 0.31MB) -
Obstacles to Community Involvement: Hidden Agendas and Dirty Tricks
Presenter: Carol Forrest, Rose Hill Communications, Inc.
Topic Area: Expanding Engagement Level: Advanced
Concerns that arise in regard to siting, permitting, or even the investigation and cleanup of contaminated sites don't always originate solely from legitimate stakeholders, such as neighbors, local officials, or members of environmental advocacy groups. Indeed, stakeholder dialogues at the local level can be swayed and seriously compromised by the intrusion of industry front groups, the machinations of plaintiffs' attorneys, or the unwarranted politicization of environmental issues by organizations or persons seeking to achieve some undisclosed advantage. The toll that "hidden agendas and dirty tricks" take on stakeholder dialogues can be considerable.
This session will explore how some organizations or persons use front groups, deliberate misinformation campaigns, and other dirty tricks on the local level to advance their own hidden agendas—to the detriment of honest community involvement and stakeholder dialogues—regardless of whether these agendas involve crippling business competitors, gaining local political advantage, or winning lawsuits of dubious merit. Far from rare, the use of dirty tricks appears to be on the rise, despite increased media exposure of these under-handed tactics.
In addition to describing dirty tricks and learning how to look for "the man (or woman) behind the curtain," this session will examine hidden-agenda cases and explore how community involvement practitioners can minimize the noxious effects on local community involvement efforts of the less-than-forthright claims of parties motivated by undisclosed financial or political gain.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download Hidden Agendas and Dirty Tricks Presentation (PDF) (7pp, 0.15MB)
Download Hidden Agendas and Dirty Tricks Handout (PDF) (21pp, 297KB) - The Importance of Understanding Communication in Disaster Response and Recovery
Presenter: Patricia Whitney, BISCO, Bayou Interfaith Shared Community Organizing
Topic Area: Expanding Engagement Level: Introductory
This session will begin with a presentation on the importance of understanding the culture of a community when responding to or recovering from a disaster. Participants also will learn possible strategies for using culture to effectively bring resources for response and recovery to communities. The presentation will use examples of both rural and urban communities of coastal Louisiana that were impacted by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Gustav and Ike, as well as the BP Oil Spill Disaster and include discussions about what they did and lessons learned for the future.
The presentation will be followed by a Q&A session with participants, and then a group discussion and spitfire or speed round on ideas or recommendations for future events. In the spitfire round, participants will be asked to present a short idea for disaster response or recovery based on their knowledge of their home communities.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download Disaster Response and Recovery Presentation (PDF) (11 pp, 1.24MB)
Download Gumbo Handout (PDF) (1 pp, 0.15MB) -
Using the Neighborhood Cohesion Calculator
Presenter: Derek Chisholm, Parametrix
Topic Area: Utilizing Technology Level: Intermediate
The Neighborhood Cohesion Calculator helps participating communities conduct an audit of the assets in neighborhoods though its use and outputs. The Calculator can be used to develop or refine neighborhood action plans and evaluate how major projects may impact neighborhoods.
The Calculator is a flexible tool that can be customized to fit the needs of any community based on the characteristics of the area. When using the calculator, the user group will "tune" the calculator to mirror the community being assessed. The model that will be demonstrated in this session will utilize the following evaluation criteria.
- Gathering Places (schools, churches, parks, grocers)
- Activities (neighborhood associations meetings, block parties, neighborhood websites/newsletters)
- Planning (adopted neighborhood plans, city support to neighborhood associations, other planning efforts)
- Other characteristics (physical divisions within the neighborhood/community, population density)
There is an alternate version of the model that is more focused on alternatives analysis. This version has less of a focus on neighborhood activities, and adds considerations necessary for alternative analysis, such as property displacements and construction duration.
Session attendees will learn about neighborhood cohesion, major determinants, and how cohesion can be impacted by city programs and major projects. Through a live, hands-on demonstration, attendees will learn how to use the Calculator and will get a copy to take home and use in their community. The tool is available as a free download.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download Cohesion Calculator Presentation (PDF) (5pp, 0.29MB)
Thursday, July 21
-
In the final plenary, Carolyn Lukensmeyer, Founder and President of DC-based AmericaSpeaks, talked about "Bringing Citizen Voices into Government." She illustrated, first through a short video presentation and then by drawing on a deep well of experience from working in the public sphere, how citizens can be effectively engaged and their values and priorities reflected in decision making. Based on her experience with AmericaSpeaks, Lukensmeyer has developed a civic engagement model that owes its success to seven underlying principles:
- Linked to Decision Makers
- Demographic Diversity
- Informed Participation
- Facilitated Deliberation
- Discover Shared Priorities
- Clear Recommendations for Action
- Sustained Engagement
Her experiences in organizing a national discussion on America's federal budget deficit and debt served as an example of the general public's ability to understand, deliberate on, and find areas of common ground around even the most polarizing policy issues. This information is transferrable across disciplines and directly relates to community engagement with respect to the environmental field.
View Adobe Connect Presentation (opens in a new window)
Download Carolyn Lukensmeyer (America Speaks) Presentation (PPT) (10pp, 1.93MB)
Download Carolyn Lukensmeyer (America Speaks) Presentation (PDF) (10pp, 454KB)
