Resources for Communities
Click here to read Stephen Reno's Conversational Poker.
Stephen Reno is the Executive Director of Leadership New Hampshire and former Chancellor of the University System of New Hampshire.
Click on the links below to visit these organizations' websites.
America Speaks
America Speaks launches American Square—America Speaks has just launched The American Square, an experiment designed to bridge the online political gap and provide a safe space for civil, multi-partisan conversations about public policy and politics. The huge disparity between left and right in our current political environment is magnified on the web. This new effort is a deliberate, idealistic attempt to build a community of people who, while believing passionately in their ideals, also believe that our democracy requires respectful discourse and willingness to compromise. http://americaspeaks.org/blog/the-american-square-is-here-2/
Everyday Democracy
Many thanks to Everyday Democracy for their wonderful resources for communities. NH Listens draws heavily from Everyday Democracy materials and is grateful for their long-time work in public engagement.
Live Free or Die Alliance
The Live Free or Die Alliance is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that serves New Hampshire citizens by providing objective information about issues and candidates; promoting the civil exchange of opinions in a variety of forums, online and in person; and connecting citizens with their elected officials. In this way, and with the assistance of our partner NH Listens, we help people influence government policy and, by extension, the course of their own lives while supporting the pursuit of knowledge of manifold aspects of New Hampshire, past, present, and future. Membership is free and open to all.
National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation
New Hampshire Humanities Council
New Hampshire Local Government Center
Useful Website Resources
Center for Advances in Public Engagement at Public Agenda
Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE)
Deliberative Democracy Consortium
The Democracy Imperative
Guide: Planning for Stronger Local Democracy
A new guide can help citizens and local leaders decide how to make their communities more engaging, inclusive, participatory, and powerful. Planning for Stronger Local Democracy is built around two lists: the questions to ask about your community in order to take stock of local democracy; and the building blocks you might consider as part of a comprehensive, sustainable strategy for vitalizing civic engagement in your town. A publication of the National League of Cities and the Deliberative Democracy Consortium, the guide can be downloaded free of charge at http://www.nlc.org/find-city-solutions/research-innovation/governance-civic-engagement.
Journal of Public Deliberation
National Conference on Citizenship
Report: Using Online Tools to Engage the Public
How can online tools help you engage citizens in public decision-making and problem-solving? What are the most common mistakes being made by public managers and other leaders as they try to work with the public online? In a given scenario, which tools and tactics seem most appropriate and effective? Using Online Tools to Engage—and be Engaged by—the Public, Matt Leighninger’s report for the IBM Center for the Business of Government, delves into these questions, describes a range of scenarios and tactics, and gives real-world examples of online engagement. It highlights over 40 different technologies in use today to support various kinds of public participation. The guide is available free of charge at http://www.businessofgovernment.org/report/using-online-tools-engage-public.
Saguaro Seminar