President’s Message – From Leah Jaramillo

A few weeks ago, I spent a truly enjoyable evening with friends honoring the great work of the Human Rights Campaign in Utah. Just hours later, I woke to find that the worst mass shooting in US history had occurred in a gay nightclub, Pulse, in Orlando. As more information became available, I began to wonder how the specifics of this event could change the kind of conversations we’ve been having about terrorism, gun-control, religion and human rights in this country. So far, I’ve experienced a range of emotion – sadness, surprise, anger, outrage, confusion, a sense of loss for the victims and their families, hope for the future, and finally determination to make things better.

A hopeful moment in the dialogue surrounding this tragedy surprisingly came from Utah Republican Lieutenant Governor Spencer J. Cox who apologized to the gay community for “not treating them with the kindness, dignity, and respect – the love – that they deserved.” Statements like this give me hope that change is beginning. But, as a P2 practitioner, I believe that all people should be treated with kindness, dignity, and respect – period. Statements like the Lt. Governor’s are appreciated, but I believe what is really needed is a call to action; a call to conversation; a call for the public to participate in decisions affecting Americans.

IAP2 USA 2017 Skills Symposium Released!

It’s here! IAP2 USA is pleased to announce the course line up for the 2017 Skills Symposium, taking place in San Diego, from Monday, February 28th to March 3rd, 2017 at the Bahia Resort. We believe that there is something for everyone – whether new to the practice or with years of experience.

Our 2016 Skills Symposium got rave reviews from the attendees, and we have upped our game for 2017. Over the next few months we will be providing in-depth information on the courses, the trainers, and the extras we are planning. But don’t wait – take a look for yourself and take advantage of the Early Bird rates. Plan to join us in San Diego!

Member Spotlight: Deanna Desedas

In her role with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, Deanna oversees the outreach and engagement for major capital construction and neighborhood-focused projects conducted by the agency. “We have hundreds of staff who conduct public outreach and engagement as part of the work they do for the agency. The challenge was how to bring authentic public engagement to scale.”

“We had identified a number of pain points. The community expressed growing frustration with the Agency’s approach to public outreach and engagement, and we would receive complaints about outreach occurring too late in the process, difficulty in reaching the agency and understanding who is in charge of a project, and a lack of consistency across projects. When this frustration turned to opposition, it created costly delays in project delivery in several ways, such as threatened lawsuits, negative press, protests and political pressure."

To take on the challenge, Deanna embarked on a process to develop a Public Outreach and Engagement Team Strategy (POETS) that would help develop public outreach notification standards for all staff conducting outreach and engagement.

The IAP2 August Webinar: MANAGING CONFLICT AND EVALUATING YOUR PROCESS

They’re two questions that can nag at the mind of a P2 practitioner: how do you handle a tough crowd, and how effective has your hard work been?

The first two White Papers commissioned by the IAP2 Canada Research Committee tackle those very issues, and on Tuesday, August 9 (2 pm Eastern / 11 am Pacific), the authors of those papers will discuss their findings in our Monthly Webinar.

Kate Nelischer surveyed best practices for Conflict Management in P2 Participation; Karen Zypchyn studied the Challenges and Advancements in Evaluating Public Participation

WEBINAR REWIND: UNDRIP and the New Face of Indigenous Consultation

President Obama supports the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). The July IAP2 Learning Webinar featured a discussion of what UNDRIP means for P2 practioners, looking at  (UNDRIP) and the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), and how those align with IAP2 principles.

Bob Joseph, the CEO of Indigenous Corporate Training, Inc., was joined by Anne Harding, Senior Stakeholder Relations Advisor for Aboriginal Communities at Suncor Energy, as webinar hosts . 

2016 IAP2 NORTH AMERICAN CONFERENCE UPDATE

We are excited to report that all the spaces are filled for the 2016 IAP2 North American Conference. There is a waiting list; and that is now capped, as well.

The conference sessions will be recorded and posted online, as will the keynote speeches.

There is still the opportunity to take part in the general discussion reflected in the theme: why should people care about P2? Join the conversation on the IAP2 Canada blog.

And listen to interviews with our two keynote speakers: Dicki Chhoyang, a Montréal native who’s former Minister of Information in the Central Tibetan Administration; and Jean-Paul Gladu, CEO of the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business. (Click on their photos to listen to the interviews.) We’re grateful to radio station C-FAX Victoria, for their assistance in producing these interviews.