Public space professionals and partners face complex and dynamic challenges in planning and managing urban environments that are inclusive, sustainable, and resilient. How can they foster collaboration and innovation to address these challenges and create value for communities? Here are some strategies and examples to inspire you.
Before engaging in any collaborative or innovative process, you need to understand the context of the public space project, including the needs, preferences, and aspirations of the stakeholders, the opportunities and constraints of the site, and the relevant policies and regulations. You can use various tools and methods to collect and analyze data, such as surveys, interviews, observations, mapping, and GIS. You can also involve the stakeholders in co-creating the vision and goals for the public space, using techniques such as workshops, focus groups, charrettes, and participatory design.
These are all excellent ideas. It can be challenging to get new people to attend public input meetings. It is very important to advertise to communities and to show up weeks in advance to other public meetings and use social media to promote your public project input meeting. Advertise that snacks will be provided. People like food!
Collaboration and innovation require trust and relationships among the public space professionals and partners, which can be fostered by creating a shared culture, language, and identity. You can use communication and facilitation skills to establish clear roles and responsibilities, common values and principles, and mutual respect and understanding. You can also use social and informal activities to strengthen the bonds and networks among the collaborators, such as icebreakers, team-building exercises, field trips, and celebrations.
Excellent input! Since values are what ultimately drive our behaviors, an initial focus on discussing and developing shared values is very important. Refer to Richard Barrett's (Barrett Values Centre) work on values and the assessments he has developed. This will provide an exceptional understanding of the power of values.
Collaboration and innovation benefit from the diversity and creativity of the public space professionals and partners, which can be leveraged by creating a conducive environment, process, and outcome. You can use design thinking and systems thinking to encourage divergent and convergent thinking, experimentation and prototyping, feedback and iteration, and integration and synthesis. You can also use various formats and media to express and share ideas, such as sketches, models, stories, scenarios, and digital platforms.
Kindness (to yourself and others) should be the foundation on which a diverse working, learning, and living environment is built. An aspect of kindness is to actively and intentionally embrace diversity and inclusion, to the end of affirming each individual's unique contribution to the team.
One of the processes I use for public project development is the Owners Project Requirements (OPR). The OPR is a deliberate way to gain input from ALL project stakeholders, including end-users and operations and maintenance people. This large group srategic process allows for the identification, discussion, and prioritization of various stakeholders' needs and wants and demonstrates how different perspectives add value to a project and help solve what may seem to be opposing project requirements.
Collaboration and innovation involve learning and adapting to the changing needs, expectations, and realities of the public space project, which can be supported by creating a culture of inquiry, reflection, and evaluation. You can use action research and adaptive management to monitor and measure the impacts and outcomes of the public space project, using indicators, metrics, and indicators. You can also use learning loops and feedback mechanisms to identify and address gaps, challenges, and opportunities, using tools such as surveys, interviews, reviews, and audits.
Our approach has been to utilize appreciative inquiry to help frame the need. This has been well received by diverse stakeholders and helps to focus on the success of what can be versus the problem-solving approach of what is broken and how can they fix it. The use of positive psychology helps people to aspire to reach their vision, and helps to focus on the future.
Collaboration and innovation generate knowledge and value that can be shared and scaled to other public space projects, which can be facilitated by creating a platform, network, and community of practice. You can use storytelling and dissemination strategies to communicate and showcase the results and lessons learned from the public space project, using channels such as reports, publications, presentations, and exhibitions. You can also use collaboration and innovation platforms and networks to connect and exchange with other public space professionals and partners, using platforms such as online forums, webinars, podcasts, and events.
Collaboration and innovation inspire and empower the public space professionals and partners to continue their work and impact, which can be nurtured by creating a sense of ownership, recognition, and appreciation. You can use empowerment and recognition strategies to acknowledge and celebrate the contributions and achievements of the public space professionals and partners, using methods such as awards, certificates, testimonials, and endorsements. You can also use inspiration and motivation strategies to encourage and support the public space professionals and partners to pursue their passions and goals, using methods such as mentoring, coaching, training, and funding.
To help strengthen and acknowledge the importance of public-public or public-private relationships, it is important to provide continuous feedback from public engagement efforts. For example, after receiving input from a questionnaire, send out the results as well as the next steps. This accountability feedback bolsters the trust that people feel about their input being utilized. It is equally important to not rely on just one input method, but instead use the multiple ideas propsed, above, including large and small (focus groups) in-person meetings, social media, mail-in, telephone... Understand that different age and ethnic groups may respond differently.