ALFA knowledge-exchange about communication and stakeholder involvement
Learning-by-doing was the primary theme of the workshop ‘knowledge exchange, communication and stakeholder involvement of large projects’. In March, the ALFA
communication partners gathered in Antwerp to learn everything about this subject from trainer Brendan Hickling. Hickling is a well-known facilitator in the field of design and mediation of interactive policy as well as a consultant with over ten years of experience.
During the workshop, Hickling and the ALFA-partners used flipchart notes to explain the subjects to the group. The objectives of the two day knowledge-exchange were to:
“Why work interactively?” was one of the questions posed. A few suggestions from the participants were:
Every method of sharing information with stakeholders has its strengths and weaknesses. For example, when making use of fact sheets, newsletters or websites, it is unclear whether people have actually received or understood this information and how they feel about it. Information gathering by means of surveys or questionnaires results in the fact
that respondents do not have the opportunity to influence the process or the chance to use the information gained. Other methods of participation discussed included consultation, restricted and open dialogues. During the workshop the ALFA-partners learned how to use each type of information within the spectrum of participation.
By the end of the workshop it was clear to the partners that good preparation results in a better outcome. They learnt to build in moments of reflection and pay more attention to the views and needs of their stakeholders. If stakeholders have a good experience it may make future projects easier.
Figure 1: trainer Brendan Hickling, source: Rijkswaterstaat
Figure 2: participants, source: Rijkswaterstaat
Learning-by-doing was the primary theme of the workshop ‘knowledge exchange, communication and stakeholder involvement of large projects’. In March, the ALFA
communication partners gathered in Antwerp to learn everything about this subject from trainer Brendan Hickling. Hickling is a well-known facilitator in the field of design and mediation of interactive policy as well as a consultant with over ten years of experience.During the workshop, Hickling and the ALFA-partners used flipchart notes to explain the subjects to the group. The objectives of the two day knowledge-exchange were to:
- Deepen the understanding of the principles that underlie public and stakeholder engagement in general;
- Introduce tools which are useful in the design of engagement processes and gain experience by using these tools on real ALFA partners projects;
- Share experience between partners;
- Explore ways of implementing the principles and tools discussed.
“Why work interactively?” was one of the questions posed. A few suggestions from the participants were:
- To get support for your project;
- To generate more ideas;
- To obtain more information;
- To understand each other better;
- To improve relationships (advantageous for future coordination).
Every method of sharing information with stakeholders has its strengths and weaknesses. For example, when making use of fact sheets, newsletters or websites, it is unclear whether people have actually received or understood this information and how they feel about it. Information gathering by means of surveys or questionnaires results in the fact
that respondents do not have the opportunity to influence the process or the chance to use the information gained. Other methods of participation discussed included consultation, restricted and open dialogues. During the workshop the ALFA-partners learned how to use each type of information within the spectrum of participation.By the end of the workshop it was clear to the partners that good preparation results in a better outcome. They learnt to build in moments of reflection and pay more attention to the views and needs of their stakeholders. If stakeholders have a good experience it may make future projects easier.
Figure 1: trainer Brendan Hickling, source: Rijkswaterstaat
Figure 2: participants, source: Rijkswaterstaat
