Engagement and Public Policy

Pub­lic engage­ment has become increas­ing­ly preva­lent with­in con­tem­po­rary demo­c­ra­t­ic sys­tems of gov­ern­ment. Pol­i­cy and deci­sion mak­ers engage and con­sult with a wide range of com­mu­ni­ties and stake­hold­ers across a wide array of pol­i­cy areas. Ratio­nales for engage­ment are viewed as means of: build­ing legit­i­ma­cy and grow­ing trust; extend­ing demo­c­ra­t­ic deci­sion-mak­ing; incor­po­rat­ing a wider range of knowl­edge in gov­er­nance; build­ing pub­lic con­sen­sus; or encour­ag­ing pol­i­cy uptake with­in soci­ety. This course explores con­cep­tu­al ratio­nales for engage­ment and an analy­sis of cur­rent practice.