This morning and throughout many conversations here at Green Cities we’ve been talking about how we engage citizens into our sustainability planning efforts. As Stan Amy said this morning, it’s not about how we react, it’s how we position ourselves to begin with. Don’t underestimate the consumer (or constituent). So the first step is all about meeting them where they are – to frame the problem or the issue in ways that make sense to them and connect with their closely held values. As green cities, it’s important for us to listen to constituents – so we can speak their language in ways that open the door to involvement.
We just had a conversation about the tension between rural and urban communities with one attendee – big agriculture is a major roadblock to change in his area. So, how could we frame the problem to engage that constituency? To which values could we connect sustainability efforts? How have you been successful?
