Printable Schedule

Opening Session

2016 PI Works! IAP2 USA Cascade Chapter is thrilled to announce the opening speaker will be investigative reporter Les Zaitz.

Eyewitness to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge Takeover – Les Zaitz
Les Zaitz was the lead reporter for The Oregonian/OregonLive's coverage of the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Oregon in January of 2016, a public standoff that became international news. Before the siege, Les wrote stories about the Bundys and other players who came to Burns, and the case of the ranching family at the heart of the controversy. He stayed in Burns more than six weeks during the takeover, reporting and leading a team of reporters and photographers. Les will share the story of engaging a broad range of stakeholders, and his observations about the influence of media and social media on highly divisive events.

Plenary Sessions

Surviving and Thriving in Big Scary Meetings with Careful Planning and Cool Technology – Penny Mabie
So, you've been tasked with a public meeting and public comments for a coal train or crude-by-rail proposal, transmission line siting or other controversial, complex and divisive topic with hundreds or thousands of attendees, heavy media coverage and active protestors. What do you do? Meet those who've faced the angry masses and not only survived, but thrived! Learn the magic of really great preparation, and sample simple but elegant, proven technologies for unassailable transparency and equality while managing the hordes. Park your protest sign, hold onto your handbills, muffle your megaphone, and shuffle into this highly interactive session. Penny Mabie For more than 20 years, Penny has thrived on that zing she feels when she's helped someone "get" why this project is important, why that person's opinion is valuable, why those decisions just must be made. Whether facilitating a group to consensus on level of flood protection or helping a family prepare for construction on their street, Penny finds joy in explaining, engaging, and educating community members, stakeholders and elected officials in and about public processes that lead to durable decisions. With a bachelor's in public policy and environmental studies, a master's in organizational leadership, and a PhD in life, Penny is right where she wants to be, doing what she loves. She is a Senior Associate with EnviroIssues in Seattle, and a former IAP2 Board Member.

Translating Climate or Environmental Anxiety into Action – Dr. Renee Lertzman and Kirstin Greene
Climate change, global warming, earthquake risk - these topics are necessary for us to address as responsible planners and community engagement professionals. Naturally, they are very difficult and can cause people to shut down, avoid or deny rather than engage. How do we and our communities come to grips with issues that we'd rather not think about? Join us to learn about what the study of psychosocial behavior and emotions can teach us. Building on applied research and practical experiences in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest, enjoy a participatory session to explore our own agency in the context of significant environmental risk and elevate your own capacity for better stakeholder engagement. Dr. Renee Lertzman is an internationally recognized thought leader and adviser who works with government, business, philanthropic, and non-governmental sectors to design research tools, engagement practices, and strategies suited for the uniquely challenging nature of environmental work. She has written extensively about how intersections of psychology, environment, and culture illuminate change work, and is regularly commissioned to write for clients and research institutions and has been featured in The Guardian, The New York Times, Time, ClimateAccess, Climate Confidential, Oregon Public Radio, and the BBC. Renee's first book Environmental Melancholia: Psychoanalytic Dimensions of Engagement was published in 2015. Kirstin Greene, AICP, is a professional planner and public process facilitator specializing in community and economic development, growth management, land use and public engagement. In addition to leading the legacy community planning firm of Cogan Owens Greene, she works on a wide range of comprehensive planning and sustainable community development projects for public and private clients. Kirstin's work on climate change includes initial research for Metro's Climate Smart Communities project, the Roadmap to 2020 for the Oregon Global Warming Commission, and Communications and Coordination for the Oregon Sustainable Transportation Initiative.

Dread, Shock and Awe – Dave Thompson
We live in a world where one wrong tweet, one stupid statement, can wreak havoc with our organization's reputation. One ignored complaint. One unhappy stakeholder or stockholder. One act of self-indulgence, misconduct or mismanagement. We know we have to respond ethically, appropriately and immediately. And we know we have to plan our crisis management ahead of time. But how? In this interactive talk, Dave Thompson will use the lessons he's learned the hard way in 36 years of professional communications to give you some tips and techniques for planning, responding to and surviving a crisis-to avoid the dread, sidestep the shock and overcome the exhaustion. Dave Thompson APR, After 20 years on radio and TV including KPTV anchor, Dave is one of ODOT's chief spokespersons who leads a team of 30 communicators around the state, teaches effective media relations, and is a past president of Portland Metro Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. Dave is the Public Affairs Manager for Oregon Department of Transportation.

Concurrent Sessions

Note: The first two sessions listed are 40 minutes and will be back-to-back in the same room. All other sessions will be 90 minutes.

Gather Input, Increase the Odds of Success – Anne Pressentin and Mandy Putney
Explore situational assessment tools to develop a public engagement plan, stakeholder interviews, and mid-project online surveys to collect input. Presenters will share the benefits of in-person interviews and the pitfalls of not doing them, and discuss how, why and when to employ online outreach surveys, the wonderful things that can happen when you do them, and the reasons they might not be enough. They will share case studies of how these tools have led to successful engagement processes, and how preventable challenges arise when they are not used. Attendees will practice developing interview questions and setting up an online survey. Anne Pressentin has 20 years' experience working to educate and engage people on natural resource, environmental, and transportation issues. She has delivered communications and outreach strategies, including facilitated meetings, community presentations, print and electronic communications, and media relations. Mandy Putney has been conducting outreach and engaging residents in transportation, community development, land use, and energy projects throughout the Pacific Northwest for the past 13 years. With a start in Seattle, she now develops and implements strategic communication plans for a variety of environmental, technical, and infrastructure projects in the Portland - Vancouver metro area. Both Anne and Mandy work for EnviroIssues.

Practical Tools for Raising Our Youth for a Culture of Civic Engagement – Marissa Grass, Jessica Pickul, Francesca Patricolo
In so many ways, our local and global fates rest on children as future participants in urban planning and public policy. Find out what makes today's modern families unique and learn how we can (and why we should!) create environments and processes that intentionally nurture a public involvement culture and mature a sense of civic responsibility within children. In this dynamic session, your presenters share best practices for reaching today's modern, busy families in public engagement processes, emphasizing practical tools for outreach, frameworks for inclusive activities, and effective approaches to language and messaging. Marissa Grass is a Confidential Executive Assistant for the City of Tigard. Jessica Pickul is a Program Manager at JLA Public Involvement. Francesca Patricolo is an Associate Planner + Public Involvement Specialist for the City of Portland Bureau of Transportation, and IAP2 USA Board Member.

90-Minute Sessions

Landfills and Pipelines and Power Stations, Oh My! Using Risk Scenario Planning to Strengthen P2 around Infrastructure – Kit Cole
This training takes into account the special challenges that big infrastructure projects present relative to public participation, and shows how to use Risk Scenario Planning to prepare and respond productively to community concerns while you build partnership with the engineers, planners and project managers working on the project. Learn the Risk Scenario Planning process by working together through a case study, and walk away with tools that enable you to replicate the process with your project teams. Participants will brainstorm and document potential risks, proposed responses, roles and responsibilities of technical and non-technical staff, and assignments for staff. Kit Cole has her own consulting firm and focuses her work at the intersection of companies, communities and the environment. Prior to opening her own firm, she was at Southern California Edison, one of the largest utilities in the nation, where she and her team promoted outreach and community engagement where high-voltage transmission lines and substations intersected with communities. She also was Director of External Affairs at Waste Management, Inc., where she conducted community engagement on landfill and recycling facility issues, focusing on landfill expansion in the West, and oversaw the company's Sustainability Initiative in the Western Region, including improving internal recycling rates, promoting green power, conducting energy audits, and improving recycled content procurement. Kit was an appointee by Governor Gray Davis to the California Environmental Protection Agency, she was a Policy Consultant to Senator Debra Bowen and the Assembly Natural Resources Committee in the California Legislature, and served as a Jesse Marvin Unruh Fellow in the California Legislature, one of the most prestigious political fellowships in the US. Kit is the IAP2 USA President-Elect.

Community Engagement Liaison Services: Effective ways of engaging and communicating with community of color – Ping Khaw, Kirstin Greene, Ronault "Polo" Catalani
With Oregon's demographics changing, the importance of culturally relevant services to reach diverse communities is growing. Learn about a great tool developed by the City of Portland which can be applied throughout the Metro area and beyond. Hear about examples from the Powell Division Transit and Development Project and the Wood Village Town Center Plan. Community Engagement Liaison (CEL) is a language interpretation and community engagement program with experienced and trained civic activists who are fluent in their native language(s) and in English who assist city government, private entities and corporations to better achieve communication, public engagement, and help integrate immigrants and refugees into the life of our communities. Many CELs are respected elders or advocates in their communities who understand the needs and issues of both the city and the community, and assist citywide public involvement programs with interpretation and facilitation services that include legal, medical, policing, social, city budget processes, technical assistance and planning. Launched through the City of Portland New Portlander Programs, 18 liaisons have worked with 16 City Bureaus in effective and efficient community partnerships. These same newcomer immigrant and refugee elders and activists have engaged nine bureaus to develop and deliver 13 Equity in Practice partnerships elevating services into previously underserved communities. These service improvements bring benefit to all residents in the geographic areas. The program has received 13 state, local and national honors in the past eight years. Ping Khaw is the President of PKS LLC. Kirstin Greene, AICP, is a Managing Principal of Cogan Owens Greene. Ronault LS (Polo) Catalani is with the City of Portland Office of Neighborhood Involvement.

Genuinely Involving the Public in Project Decision-making – Jeanne Lawson and Stacy Thomas
This presentation offers a pragmatic approach to productively engaging a community in the creation of a decision-making/evaluation framework. It intends to provide a template to help answer important questions such as: How can we, as public participation professionals, improve the evaluation processes? How do we instill criteria with preference and value elements that are central to public concerns? How do we make public preferences influential in selecting among options? Planning for public works and land use regularly involves decisions that directly affect people's lives and the shape of their communities. The outcomes of these plans determine the nature of commonplace local necessities such as roads, water, housing, schools, open space, parks, natural resources, and sewer. Community quality of life often appears to be at stake. Local interest in such projects can be charged with emotion, mistrust and concern. Oftentimes, the motivating factor for the project itself is intense public pressure to resolve qualms about service delivery, public safety or environmental degradation. Even with all this community interest, it can be challenging to find ways to productively engage stakeholders and satisfy their desire to influence project decision-making. Evaluation is the fundamental decision point in any planning project but sometimes lacks for influential public input. Selection criteria are often dominated by technical standards, policy directives, regulatory mandates and feasibility, constructability or cost constraints while ignoring local values and preferences that are vitally important to the community - or the evaluation ineffectively communicates how these values are addressed. While vital, these evaluation elements intimidate non-expert community members who are not versed in the architectural, engineering or construction aspects of a public works project. In turn, the lay public is essentially left out of the evaluation process by virtue of their lack of technical understanding. The result can be a community that is unfulfilled by, displeased with, or suspicious of the project decision. The template described, and presented in this session, is a three-step guideline for practitioners who want to provide community access to the development of a project's evaluation framework and infuse it with selection criteria that will inspire community engagement and satisfy local needs. It is a roadmap for public influence in the decision-making process leading to a gratifying and effective solution. Jeanne Lawson is a Principal of JLA Public Involvement. Stacey Thomas is a Senior Program Manager for JLA.

We Already Paid For It! – Colleen Gants
See how one firm is helping to gain public acceptance for infrastructure projects. For example, many people don't know what they pay in gas taxes, or that there's a state and federal gas tax. But most highly value their transportation network and want it there when they need it. So when decision-makers put forth new, better or more fair ways to offset gas tax revenue, it's challenging to get the public's support for a solution to a problem they may not even know they have. The Did You Know Campaign in Virginia addressed misinformation and lingering questions. Why are you tolling us when there's no construction yet? Where is the money going? How does the P3 work? The Agency launched TV, radio and billboards featuring Jimmy Ray, a well-known, trusted local personality who had previously spoken of not understanding the need for tolls on his radio program. As the PRR website says, "No matter the topic, we seek to build public trust, engage and inform stakeholders, and manage emerging issues. As public involvement strategists and trained facilitators, we help navigate challenges during all phases and types of planning and project implementation. From Design-Build to Public Private Partnerships to consensus building, our work helps you create a positive impact in the community, and stay on-time and on budget." Colleen Gants is Co-President of PRR in Seattle.

Perfecting Partnerships: Working with Community Based Organizations to Improve Your Public Process – Sylvia Ciborowski
Even the most well-intentioned public involvement processes tend to attract the "usual suspects." Engaging more than a narrow slice of the community is tough, and it can be difficult to know where to start. Partnering with community based organizations can help bring the voices of traditionally underserved community members into a process-but establishing and carrying out these partnerships can be a challenge. Learn tips and tools to successfully partner with community based organizations in any public engagement process. This session will provide a framework to help government agencies and public involvement practitioners to: Establish relationships with community based organizations-without resorting to cold calling. Decide which organizations to involve, and set clear expectations for their roles. Co-create the public process and decision-making design with organizations. Maintain neutrality, even when collaborating with advocacy, mission-driven organizations. Fairly compensate organizations for their effort. Follow up with individuals so they know their voice was heard. Contract with organizations and manage logistics and invoicing. Sylvia Ciborowski is a program manager at JLA Public Involvement with nearly a decade of experience in community engagement. She is JLA's equity specialist and has partnered with community based organizations in a wide range of projects. Sylvia will co-lead the session with the Latino Network, a Portland-based community organization that aims to educate, engage and empower the Latino community, and that has been involved in many successful collaborations with government agencies.

Elements of Video Production - Video 4U (tube) – Kimberly Dinwiddie and Peter Murphy
We are living in a time when the attention spans of the people we engage is precious and short lived. Researchers have found that visuals are worth an average 1.8 million words and we humans are biologically drawn to video. 1.8 million words can provide our audiences with enough information to educate and empower them to get involved in a public process. Oregon Department of Transportation continues to use video to engage their audience by telling stories about people, communities and emotions. Learn why video is engaging to an audience, view examples of ODOT's video engagement strategy, and get tips for producing your own videos. Presenters will review types of video (interview style, standup style, raw video, natural sound, time lapse, etc.), length of videos, production methods, engagement and publication methods, and needed resources. Learn how to distribute videos via YouTube, Facebook, etc. (social media) and promote via Gov Delivery and news release contacts. See a quick demo of editing and script, and plan your own video project. Kimberly Dinwiddie is a Community Affairs Coordinator/Public Information Officer and Peter Murphy is Region 4 Public Information Officer for ODOT.

Solid Tools for Your P2 Toolbox – Tony Faast and Sheri Wantland
Grandpa used to say you could build anything if you just had the right tools. This session presents ingenious tools for productive public participation (P2), drawing from both the education community and our own decades of experience engaging stakeholders. We often think "if they knew what we know, they'd support us," and that may be true, but we need to clearly communicate the knowns and unknowns to all types of audiences. It's a given that any group will include people with diverse learning styles, so it's smart to think about that as you develop presentations and collateral materials. This session will show you how to structure communications effectively to reach different types of learners and audiences. You'll also practice using a SAW, one of the simplest and most effective P2 planning tools ever devised. Tony and Sheri will share insights into how they overcame their toughest P2 challenges. This hands-on learning session will help you master tools and confidence that will expand and improve your P2 practice. Participants will assess their own learning styles, try a Strategic Analysis Worksheet (SAW) to identify effective P2 techniques for specific issues, tasks, plans, etc., and study how these tools and techniques have worked in challenging, real life P2 campaigns. Tony Faast, a 37 year veteran of both State and Federal Fish & Wildlife Agencies, is the President of Cascade Outreach Institute, helping collaborative groups solve problems efficiently and effectively. Sheri Wantland has 30+ years' experience in public involvement for the Oregon Liquor Control Commission and Clean Water Services, and is the communications lead for the Cascade Chapter of IAP2 USA.

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