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The Census Debate: An Opportunity for Public Dialogue…
Friday, July 23rd, 2010

Over the past few weeks, there has been a great debate in Canada on the role of the census, and what form it should take – a short, widely-distributed version or a longer, less widely-distributed version – and whether completion should be mandatory or voluntary.

Those supporting a mix of a shorter, mandatory version combined with a voluntary longer version posit that the existing mandatory long form is an invasion of privacy and that it is coercive to force Canadians to complete it, considering that voting in Canada is not mandatory. In contrast, those supporting the current mandatory long version combined with a voluntary short version argue that it produces a wealth of data required by innumerable levels of government, non-governmental organizations and private business, and that any changes will produce a skewed or even useless national demographic record.

While the sweltering temperatures of early July have subsided, debate on the census remains heated. I see the debate around this issue as an excellent opportunity for dialogue, deliberation and public engagement – for those involved in the decision and its ramifications to come together and decide what the best path forward is. There are a number of tools that I could see being used to consult nationally:

  • A series of face-to-face dialogues held across the country, during which stakeholders would come together to learn about and work through the various options available;
  • An online consultation, using a ChoiceBook, during which participants once again work through the pros and the cons of a number of options.
  • A live online chat with the federal Minister of Industry, providing participants a chance to hear firsthand about and to discuss the options available.

It is through listening to understand, exploring and testing one’s personal assumptions, searching for strengths and value in other positions, and seeking an outcome that creates new common ground that sustainable decisions can be found on this issue and other pressing public policy issues.

- Stephan Telka -



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“What the?!” Whatever happened to the UK Government’s innovative crowdsourcing project, the “Spending Challenge”?
Friday, July 16th, 2010

Earlier this week, I got really excited! (You should have seen me…)

On July 12, The UK Government launched an innovative crowdsourcing project to gather public ideas for reducing the country’s serious budget deficit. The Spending Challenge used an engaging website where members of the public co u ld submit their ideas for “getting more for less” by making public services less costly and more efficient. Participants could also read each other’s ideas, as well as rate and comment on them.

This was true crowdsourcing, where the community of users provides the engagement sponsor with a ranked list of measures based on what they think is most important to consider.

Before being released for public involvement on July 12, the Spending Challenge was used internally and received over 60,000 ideas from public servants government! And, with their expertise, this response was likely full of golden ideas.

What happened!?

So, I was surprised today when I returned to the engagement site, only to see that it had completely changed….

Gone is the ability to read other people’s ideas, to comment and to rate! You can still submit ideas – but that’s about all. Have a look for yourself: http://spendingchallenge.hm-treasury.gov.uk/

Less engaging + less effective

I think this new process design change is less innovative and, ultimately, less effective for several reasons:

  • No Interaction: There’s no dialogue or interaction between participants. People cannot engage in dialogue on the subject matter, exchange insights or perspectives.
  • No Community: The community of participants cannot collaborate together to co-create or improve ideas posted.
  • No Priorities Identified: Now, the UK Government will not generate a rated set of suggestions, showing which measures participants thought were most important to consider or implement. Instead, the results will be more of a “laundry list” than more a useful, publicly generated set of priorities

I still think the UK Government should be applauded for involving the public in tough, values-based discussions about government services.

That said, I think the redesign of the site and whole engagement process had made it less engaging for users and less effective as a tool to inform government decisions.

- Ellis Westwood -



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Fielding Graduate University’s Dialogue, Deliberation and Public Engagement Program Enters its 7th Year!
Friday, July 9th, 2010

The DDPE Graduate Program is entering its seventh year running at Fielding Graduate University and is now working in collaboration with the University of Western Sydney, Center for Citizenship and Public Policy. Fielding Graduate University is located in Santa Barbara, California – not that its students need ever visit campus. Fielding’s learning model utilizes distance learning via an “online campus” in addition to face-to-face events.

When I took the DDPE course last year, we had two face-to-face meetings (one in September in San Diego, and one in January in Santa Barbara), and during the rest of the five month program we met “virtually” once every other week in different group formations by phone and through online discussions.

Full disclosure: Ascentum has partnered with Fielding to provide resources and support to host the online dialogue in a learning module mid-way through the DDPE course.

“This distinctive program [DDPE] strives for the development of mastery through building the skills, knowledge and intuitive sensibility that are needed to make wise choices about how to bring forms of dialogue, deliberation, and engagement into situations where they are most effective.”

I found the DDPE program stimulating (great readings, discussions, guest speakers), relaxed and at the same time challenging. Relaxed in that there is a lot of flexibility in how you participate online, by phone, and in person, and also in the peer-to-peer learning model. However it was also challenging in the sense of getting the group to work together: getting “communicators” to communicate well with each other, and managing the delicate flow of facilitation in a room full of facilitators. Good practice for all.

Overall, it’s an interesting course, and a valuable learning experience.

- Nicole Pollack -



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Climate change, the Gulf of Mexico and the G8/G20
Friday, June 25th, 2010

Amid the discussions about this week’s G8 and G20 , there are pressing public issues that demand leaders’ attention. It is six months since Copenhagen, and the G8 Accountability Report raises concerns about member countries performance on the  environmental front.

This is happening at the same time that citizens across the world  witness the ongoing environmental and economic devastation caused by BP’s Deepwater Horizon spill in one of the world’s richest, most diverse and fragile marine ecosystems. With 60,000 barrels of oil continuing to spew into the Gulf of Mexico, there is a growing public dialogue about reorienting our approach to  to deal holistically with our economic, energy and environmental needs.

The Gulf of Mexico catastrophe  demonstrates  simple approaches to complex global challenges don’t work.  Economist Jeffrey Sachs in Commonwealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet and management guru Peter Senge in The Necessary Revolution, advocate transformative approaches to climate change that integrate economic, environmental and social dimensions through shared governance involving governments, the public, and corporate and community sectors.

A promising initiative with which I am involved (through Ascentum and the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa) seeks to advance practical and theoretical knowledge about shared governance through citizen deliberations: the Alberta Climate Change Dialogue (ABCD). This five year project, funded by a $1 million Community-University Research Alliance (CURA) grant from the Social Science and Humanities Federation of Canada (SSHRC) with $3.1 million in matching and in-kind support, led by University of Alberta Principal Investigator Dr. David Kahane, focuses on citizen contributions. ABCD researchers and practitioners will explore, in partnerships with Alberta municipalities and provincial ministries, environmental NGOs and industry, how and to what degree citizen deliberations influence policy; and how and to what degree participation in formal deliberations shapes citizen knowledge, motivation, and capacity to act on climate issues.

Check out this website www.albertaclimatedialogue.ca or email  abcd@ualberta.ca for more information on the project.

- Mary Pat MacKinnon -



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Engaging young people on their views of the future – and motivations for making a change in their communities
Friday, June 18th, 2010

Lots of people are worried about young people these days; why they vote less and appear less socially and politically engaged.

But, instead of just studying youth, Ascentum is part of an exciting community-level project to actively engage young people, as well as the rest of their communities, in dialogues and action about their confidence in learning and on how they want to make a difference in their neighbourhood, city, country or world.

The project is led by the Canadian Education Association, which has partnered with five Social Planning Councils, as well as Ascentum, to conduct a yearlong public engagement initiative pilot project in Ontario.  Each Social Planning Council involved is conducting its own face-to-face dialogues, tied together with a broader online process being designed by us.  The aim is to encourage dialogue, inspire action and collect data to inform education policy decisions.

We’re really excited to be involved and for the chance to work with both CEA and the Councils.  They both really “get” public participation and share Ascentum’s philosophy that it leads to more sustainable decisions.  The Association has been around since 1891 and works to foster national dialogue on education policy and how it can contribute to a better Canada.  Social Planning Councils are truly pioneers in public involvement.  Their missions are to create civic societies in their local communities, which they foster through capacity building, education, advocacy and engagement, and they have been experimenting in public involvement for many years.  The Social Planning Councils involved in the project are:

We are looking forward to working with and learning from them as the project unfolds!

We’ll keep you updated over the next few months with sneak peaks and news…

- Ellis Westwood -



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Strengthening the Red Seal program – through stakeholder involvement
Friday, June 4th, 2010

Ascentum is excited to be working with the Canadian Council of Directors of Apprenticeship (CCDA) to develop a plan to strengthen and improve their signature “Red Seal” program, a system of common standards for the skilled trades in Canada. For 50 years, Canada’s provinces and territories have worked together to build the Red Seal Program, an endorsement that signals excellence to employers, instils pride in skilled workers, and promotes geographic labour mobility. As the Canadian economy continues to grow, develop, and change, so too are our labour, skills and training needs.

The CCDA is considering the adaptation of a trades certification model that can meet numerous objectives: providing industry with a clearer picture of the individual worker’s competency, removing barriers to certification for many workers, and contributing to the productivity and competitiveness of Canada’s economy.

In collaboration with CCDA, Ascentum has designed, is facilitating and reporting on a series of cross-Canada stakeholder dialogues with government agencies, industry bodies and experienced trainers to discuss the benefits and challenges related to strengthening the Red Seal Program.

The end of our dialogue schedule is approaching, with seven of the eleven dialogues now complete. Members of our team have travelled with CCDA representatives to Halifax, Charlottetown, St. John’s, Ottawa, Toronto, Winnipeg, Montréal and Fredericton. The next week will be spent pouring over the data we have collected thus far, and preparing for our final four dialogues in Saskatoon, Edmonton, Yellowknife and Vancouver. I’m particularly excited about the dialogues in the latter two cities, at which I’ll be carefully listening to and taking notes on the unique perspectives of those from northern Canada and the West Coast.

After the production of a final report in early summer, we will be moving on to the second phase of the project, an innovative online consultation that will build on the in-person dialogues and take the conversation to a broader group of stakeholders across the country.

For more information on the “Strengthening the Red Seal Program” project, including updates on the online consultations planned for Autumn 2010, visit www.strengtheningtheredseal.ca. 



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Respecting Privacy, Learning from Facebook
Friday, May 28th, 2010

Facebook has been receiving a lot of attention lately as a result of their privacy settings.  In particular the default settings on new features like the Instant Personalization through the new Graph API which launched in April . Matt McKeon has a great visual illustration on how the default Facebook privacy settings have changed between 2007 and 2010.

The Evolution of Privacy on Facebook

Matt’s images are complex but they show the gradual trend for Facebook default settings to be more public and the complexity of sharing different information with different groups of people. Its important to understand that these are the default settings and many people have chosen to define their own settings and comfort levels.

Facebook has recently announced and is currently rolling-out simpler privacy settings for all users. The general trend is to allow the user to opt-into new services instead of enabling them by default. Its important to learn Facebook and apply the same principals when engaging individuals. Theses principals are:

1/Inform the User

Outline exactly what information you need from them and how the information will be used. On my websites this is done through a privacy policy but may need to be updated for Facebook, Twitter and other Social Media websites.

2/ Explicit Consent

When you launch a new initiative or service that effect privacy or personal information, request explicit consent on the new usage of personal information. It is generally not acceptable to automatically assume everyone wants to participate or share personal information.

3/ Keep it Simple

Facebook has learned that by adding multiple options and controls they confused the user and may it hard for users to understand what they were sharing.

4/ Listen and Respond Quickly

Problems may arise where information is disclosed unintentionally and effect user data. Respond quickly and effectively to these situation and respect the user’s involved, where possible inform them of the situation.

Facebook has achieved incredible growth by allowing users to share personal information with their friends. They recognize that users will share more personal and use the service more effectively when they are confident of their privacy.

- Colin Smillie -



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Place à la jeunesse…
Wednesday, May 5th, 2010

La Fédération de la jeunesse canadienne-française (FJCF) est un organisme « par et pour les jeunes »  qui reconnaît le rôle important que jouent les jeunes d’expression française dans le développement et le bien-être de leurs communautés et qui met tout en œuvre afin de faire en sorte qu’ils puissent s’engager à leur façon et… en français.

C’est dans ce contexte que la FJCF a développé sa Stratégie d’intervention jeunesse (SIJ). Cette stratégie, publiée en 2009, est le fruit d’une consultation pancanadienne dans le cadre de laquelle plus de 200 jeunes d’expression française, âgés de 14 à 25 ans, ont formulé leurs recommandations quant aux moyens d’encourager et d’appuyer la participation citoyenne des jeunes. Elle a pour but d’aider à guider les actions des instances gouvernementales et des intervenants communautaires pour encourager une culture d’implication sociale chez près de 1,7 million de jeunes d’expression française au Canada.

C’est dans le cadre de la SIJ qu’Ascentum a collaboré avec la FJCF pour développer un carnet de consultation en ligne dans lequel les jeunes sont appelés à explorer la question de leur participation citoyenne, et d’offrir leurs perspectives sur comment et pourquoi ils s’engagent (ou non) dans leur communauté.

Pourquoi? Tel qu’expliqué dans le carnet de consultation :

« En gros, la participation citoyenne, c’est de mettre de son énergie et de ses talents au service de sa communauté ou d’une cause qui nous tient à cœur. C’est essentiel pour la communauté… et surtout, essentiel pour la jeunesse. C’est ainsi qu’elle prend la place qui lui revient maintenant en société pour bâtir l’avenir dont elle rêve. »

- Manon Abud -



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Public Involvement: some parting thoughts from Ascentum’s first co-op student
Thursday, April 29th, 2010

With my current co-op semester coming to an end, it seems appropriate to reflect on my experiences here at Ascentum. As the company’s very first intern, I really didn’t know what to expect when I first began. But now, in considering what I’ve learned over the past four months, it’s challenging to figure out where to begin!

What strikes me most is how I think about public engagement now. Leveraging the values, opinions and ideas of the public and relevant stakeholders is the key to accountability and sustainable decision-making. Since organizations have to manage their time and resources quite carefully, it’s clear that we can’t (and shouldn’t) be doing public engagement for everything. But we should be strategic, and ask ourselves:

  • What issues and/or jurisdictions in Canada could benefit significantly from public engagement?
  • How can these types of initiatives/events be conducted more effectively?
  • How can we ensure that the results actually reach the decision-makers?

This optimism for public engagement has been shaped by the exposure I’ve had to some truly fascinating projects that Ascentum is currently involved with. Two experiences stand out for me:

  1. Strengthening the Red Seal Program through Organizational Performance Standards. Ascentum has been asked to engage regional stakeholders across the country, in order to explore the utility of a more robust model for skills acquisition and recognition for trades workers. Through this experience, I’ve been exposed to the high level of strategic planning, attention to detail, and effective communication skills needed to conduct a meaningful engagement process. You can learn more about this exciting project at: http://strengtheningtheredseal.ca.
  2. Helping our team conduct some of the in-person stakeholder consultations for the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC). These were for Phase II of the Mental Health Strategy for Canada initiative (there are a total of 18 events planned, with the fourth event is being held today and tomorrow here in Ottawa). Ascentum is working closely with the MHCC to lead the facilitation of these consultations, which bring together a diversity of people affected by mental health issues, both personally and professionally. These were very rewarding experiences- not only did I realize how prevalent mental health issues are in Canada, but you could really sense the passion and commitment of the people in the room. You can learn more about this MHCC initiative here.

I’d like to make sure that I thank the Ascentum team for giving me such great opportunities. In considering what I’ve learned about the use of social media, I hope that this last posting has some value for anyone that took the time to read it. As I said in my first blog, if you’re going to say something, make sure it’s useful, or at least interesting!

- Tristan Eclarin -



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Building an organ and tissue donation and transplantation system for Canada – through public involvement
Friday, April 16th, 2010

Ascentum is proud to be working with Canadian Blood Services (CBS) to address the pressing issue of organ and tissue donation and transplantation (OTDT), a project I have been working on as lead analyst since December.

Canada stands out as the only western nation without a national, coordinated system for OTDT. In 2008, there were more than 4,300 Canadians on an organ waiting list; of those, 215 died without getting the transplant that could have saved their lives.

With a mandate from the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Deputy Ministers of Health (excluding Quebec), CBS is engaging stakeholders, the public and the medical community to develop a recommendation for a new national OTDT system. Three committees have already been struck, including a Steering Committee of 11 prominent experts in public healthcare policy, and two expert committees, one focused on organs and the other on tissues. These committees will meet throughout the year, and will lead the development of the formal system recommendation.

In collaboration with CBS, Ascentum has designed, is facilitating and reporting on a series of cross-Canada public dialogues with interested Canadians on the principles and elements of a new national system.

Seven of nine dialogues have been successfully completed – in London, Vancouver, Edmonton, Halifax, Winnipeg, Regina and St. John’s, – and we are preparing for the last two dialogues in Moncton (May 4) and Toronto (May 29).  Over 225 Canadians have answered the call to participate, including the voices of living donors, the families of deceased donors, recipients, health professionals, concerned citizens and community leaders.

I have been working closely with our facilitators Manon and Mary Pat to make sense of the rich contributions brought by these diverse participants. Some recurring themes extracted thus far are: the importance of a pan-Canadian system with high quality standards, safety, improved education and awareness, integrity and trust.

At the end of May I’ll be helping facilitate our final dialogue in Toronto, where I’m looking forward to meeting with and listening to participants on their vision for an OTDT system in Canada. From there, we will be working with CBS to finalize their end report, ensuring that the views of Canadians are heard in the design of a system aimed at improving outcomes and saving lives across this country.

For more information on the public dialogues, including how to register to participate in the final events in Moncton and Toronto, visit www.blood.ca/speakup

- Stephan Telka -



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