Climate Generation Day 3

Practical Stakeholder and community engagement

Introduction to Stakeholder and Community Engagement

Session Aim• To help you identify and engage the key stakeholders

for your project Learning Outcomes • Able to use a number of tools to identify and analyse

stakeholders• List three critical success factors for effective

stakeholder engagement• Write a communications plan

Introduction to stakeholder and community engagement

Agenda• What is a stakeholder?• Benefits of stakeholder engagement• Engagement concepts and tools• Identifying and analysing key stakeholders in a given

scenario(s)• Developing a project communications strategy

Brainstorm

• Stakeholder Engagement

meaningful connections

dialogue

complexity

understanding assumptions

power

interestscommunication

relationships

diversity

accountability

participation

Introduction to stakeholder and community engagement

What is a stakeholder? ‘a person or institution having a stake in the outcome of a situation or

decision’ Stakeholder: an individual, community or organisation that affects, or is

affected by, the operations of a company. (see Freeman, 1984)

What is stakeholder engagement ? A process which is about building relationships to increase the likelihood

of cooperation and social learning leading to better and more equitable and sustainable decision making

Example of a stakeholder map

Why engage?

The issues we face are complex…• There is increasing interdependency in our

communities & world• There is a diversity of issues• There are a variety of interests

….and require dialogue for optimal resolution

Benefits of stakeholder engagement

Gives people some say over how projects or policies may affect their lives (empower the disadvantaged)

Including people gives them a “stake” in the process, generates a sense of ownership

Involving stakeholders helps to identify challenges and opportunities early on

Better decision making, reduces potential for conflict, essential for sustainability

Learning opportunities for all, social learning , knowledge sharing, skills enhancement

Funding bodies increasingly require partnership working

Some perceptions of stakeholder engagement...

Arnstein’s Ladder of Engagement (1969)

Positions I want the window opened

Interest More fresh air

Need I need to breath

Example

Analysing stakeholders: going deeper

Potential PartnerYour Project

If I don’t know why you want something, I can’t come up with creative solutions that address your needs and interests.

Once you understand the needs and know the interests, there will be new possibilities and you will be better prepared to engage in the stakeholder process.

Important message about PIN

Analysing potential partners using a matrixHigh Power

Low Power

Not affected Highly affected

Exercise: Flooding in Senegal

• Watch the Video Clip• Work in small groups• Use the matrix to identify the stakeholders

– Who are the stakeholders?– Who is most affected by the flooding? – Who has influence?– Who are the absent stakeholders?

Your Scenario

How was it for you?

What did you learn?

Do you have experiences to share with these kinds of processes?

Refreshment Break

Source: WWF - Cross-Cutting Tool Stakeholder Analysis

Developing a communications strategy for the scenario/your project

Step 1. Read the case study. Who are the key stakeholders?

Step 2. Map the stakeholders: Be specific, put the names of the organisations and individuals– Are there any unexpected stakeholders?

Quirke, 1995

Developing a communications strategy for the case study

Step 3. Developing a communications strategy– Develop a plan for communicating with the key stakeholders in the

case study– What methods and how often do you recommend (email, newsletter,

website, blog, meeting, presentation)?

The Communications Strategy

How was it for you?

What did you learn?

Do you have experiences to share with these kinds of processes?

Developing a communications strategy for your project

Step 4. Developing a communications strategy– How do you want to communicate with your key stakeholders– What method (email, newsletter, website, blog, meeting,

presentation)?– How often will you communicate with them?

Successful Stakeholder Engagement

• A real case study

Benefits and Constraints

• Social learning• Buy-in to decisions• Empower participants• Sustainable outcomes• Cheaper in the long term• . . . .

• Time consuming• More planning and

preparation required• No guaranteed outcomes• There are costs attached• . . . .

Key dimensions of effective engagement

How does it happen• bringing together everyone affected by a decision• sharing responsibility for the planning and the process with

stakeholders• managing processes and facilitating discussions professionally

and independently• ensuring equality of input into the decision-making process by

all stakeholders• ensuring that information is recorded and communicated

clearly and transparently to all stakeholders.

Hoped for outcomes

• practical long-term solutions for people and the environment• increased stakeholder buy-in to the process and the outcome• new understanding and improved relationships, reducing the

potential for future conflict• new learning and new partnerships, involving government,

business and local communities• greater awareness of the value of involving people and

communities in the decisions that affect their lives.

ENGAGEMENT IN 1 WORD

• If you now had to describe your thoughts on engagement in 1 word, what would it be? Has it changed?