PublicVoice

Citizens’ Panels and Council Long Term Plans

Jared — Tue, 08 May 2012 05:30:26 +0000

With New Zealand’s council currently in full swing into long term planning, it is a good time to consider the important role a citizens' panel can have during the planning process.

A citizens’ panel can be useful in two key areas:

· Long-Term Plan Development – Testing and Pre-Consultation
· Long-Term Plan – Public Consultation

1. Long-Term Plan Development – Testing and Pre-Consultation

A citizens’ panel gives immediate access to a representative sample of the community. This provides council planners an invaluable tool to pre-test assumptions their planning is based upon, and allows for fine tuning the plans before they go to public consultation.

Coding a Better Government

Jared — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:01:54 +0000

In this video Jennifer Pahlka outlines the role that apps can play in local government. Check out the Citizens Apps that we provide.

Tararua District Council – New PublicVoice in Council

Jared — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 21:06:06 +0000

Tararua District Council and PublicVoice are currently recruiting for the new Tararua District Council Citizens' Panel. The final day for recruitment is this Sunday 25 March.

Do you want to let council know what you really think on big local issues?

Manawatu Citizens’ Panel Rates District Vision

Jared — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 20:53:04 +0000

Recent Manawatu District Council Citizens' Panel results about the future of the Manawatu District have been posted on the Council Website.

It was an interesting survey which gave the panel of more than 580 residents to comment on the Council outcomes and to prioritise these outcomes.

The group ranked the outcomes in priority, and did so as follows:

PublicVoice Partners with Delib

Jared — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 00:38:18 +0000

PublicVoice has partnered with UK-based digital democracy company Delib. Delib has created a range of software applications (better known as apps) which help local and central government agencies engage and consult with their communities.

We are excited to be able to provide these solutions to the New Zealand public sector and see huge potential for these Citizens' Apps to assist in greater community engagement throughout New Zealand.

The three key apps that we currently provide are:

Online Citizen Panels – An Advance in Research and Community Consultation

Jared — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 07:37:00 +0000

In their report ‘Online citizen panels as an advance in research and consultation: A Review of pilot results’ Anne Sharp and Katherine Anderson from the University of South Australia come to the conclusion that online citizens panel can provide councils with a viable alternative to traditional methods of community consultation and research.

Citizens panels they argue can provide councils with definite advantages for local government because of their ability to engage large numbers of citizens over extended period of times in a very cost effective way.

The Antidote to Apathy

Jared — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 01:00:59 +0000

In this short but insightful TED speech, Dave Meslin outlines why people shy away from public engagement and argues that it is not because people are too selfish, stupid or lazy. Meslin argues that many times the authorities and organisations involved implement processes which intentionally exclude people from participating.

Meslin says that part of the blame lies with the fact that current consultation processes can act as barriers to public feedback.

Citizens Panels in New Zealand – Complimentary Research Report

Jared — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 08:32:51 +0000

As part of the launch of PublicVoice we have compiled a special research into Citizens Panels in New Zealand.

This report supports the use of Citizens’ Panels as a consultation tool for local government. It summarises the legislative context for consultation, and the way in which councils currently meet their obligations to consult the community. It describes the concept of a Citizens’ Panel, and the advantages of using a Panel. The report concludes with a case study of the Citizens’ Panel developed by Palmerston North City Council.

A copy of this 18 page report is now available.

PublicVoice Launches Citizens’ Panel for Manawatu District Council

Jared — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 18:51:23 +0000

Recruitment has now been completed for the new Manawatu District Council PublicVoice Citizens' Panel. The aim of the Panel is to to simply gauge the views of the wider community and access the views of the silent majority.