How can you ensure all community members' needs are heard?

2 Plan the engagement

When designing an appropriate and inclusive engagement strategy, you should consider the purpose and scope of the engagement, the level and type of engagement, the methods and tools of engagement, the timing and frequency of engagement, the resources and support of engagement, and the risks and challenges of engagement. What are you trying to achieve? How much input or decision-making power will the community have? How will you communicate with the community? When and how often will you engage with them? What resources do you need to secure? What potential barriers or pitfalls could arise, and how will you address them? Aligning your strategy with your goals, objectives, and ethical principles is key.

3 Implement the engagement

Once you have a clear plan, you can start implementing your engagement activities with the community. It is important to be respectful and responsive by listening actively, acknowledging different perspectives, and responding to feedback or concerns. You should also be transparent and accountable by sharing information, expectations, and outcomes, and explaining how community input is used or why it is not. Additionally, you should be flexible and adaptive by adjusting your plan or methods as needed, based on the community's feedback, preferences, or changing circumstances. Moreover, it is essential to be inclusive and equitable by reaching out to diverse and underrepresented groups, providing accessible and culturally appropriate options, and addressing any power imbalances or conflicts. Lastly, you should be collaborative and empowering by involving the community in co-designing, co-delivering, or co-evaluating the engagement process or outcomes, as well as supporting their capacity and agency.

4 Evaluate the engagement

After completing your engagement activities, it's important to evaluate their effectiveness and impact. You can use surveys, interviews, focus groups, or observations to collect data on process indicators such as how well you planned and implemented your engagement activities, the strengths and weaknesses of your methods and tools, and the satisfaction of you and the community with the process. Additionally, you should examine the outcome indicators such as the results or changes that happened due to your engagement activities, how they contributed to your goals and objectives, and the satisfaction of you and the community with the outcomes. Furthermore, it's essential to share your evaluation findings and recommendations with the community and other stakeholders while acknowledging their contributions and achievements.

5 Learn and improve

Finally, you should use your evaluation findings and feedback to learn from your engagement experience and improve your future practice. Ask yourself and the community what worked well and why, as well as what did not work well and why. Think about what can be done differently or better next time, as well as the key lessons or insights gained from the engagement. Determine the next steps or actions to follow up or sustain the engagement, and document and disseminate your engagement process, outcomes, and learnings. Don't forget to celebrate your success and impact with the community and other stakeholders.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?