In an event of environmental impact assessment (EIA), encouraging public participation is particular important during the process of open deliberation attributed to the following reasons. First, people may contribute vital environment information to support decision making for the authority in charge. Secondly, through the process of participation, not only satisfying the right of "be aware" for people but establishing the consensus toward a feasible alternative in advance. In the past several years, Decision Support Systems (DSS), through the integration of human intelligence and software engineering, has been widely used to solve semi-structure or ill-structure problems. Nevertheless, DDS is designed for single user. In most situations involving many stockholders, a decision may not be made simply by a single person but by a group of people after reaching some agreement. It is therefore important to develop Group Decision Support System (GDSS) to deal with such problems. The current research employs the concept of GDSS and develops the prototype of a GDSS for promoting "public participation" in EIA. Such system fully integrates various techniques to cover "Delphi", "Certainty Factor", and "3D Geographic Information System (GIS)". "Delphi" is used as the mechanism to facilitate the reduction of dissentient view, while "Certainty Factor" offers an easy yet effective approach to evaluate public opinion under a multi-criteria decision making environment. Finally people can visualize the future landscape of all alternatives with the virtual scene generated by 3D GIS. To make the general public aware the EIA related information, the GDSS also takes full advantage of the Internet to deliver message in multimedia form. The case study to demonstrate the usage of such GDSS is the transportation project of building a sightseeing cross-harbor cable car between Mt. qi-hou and Mt. shou. Through using the GDSS by the stockholders, more people are willing to take part in EIA and thus put "public participation" in practice. In consequence, the authority in charge of EIA may make more appropriate decision in light of the results from public participation.

A review of participatory methods used by forty-nine of the fifty State Departments of Transportation during preparation of their most recently adopted statewide long-range transportation plan revealed the flexibility needed to design context-sensitive methods tailored to the specific planning situation. Four parameters are used to characterize methods used by the States: the planning purpose, participatory goal, timing, and the public scale. The report discusses five opportunities to optimize the participatory process that can broaden reach while maintaining a slim budget. These value-added strategies include taking the process to the public, taking stock of public knowledge and understanding, leveraging existing local relationships, using online techniques to supplement face-to-face contact, and integrating public input into the plan. / text

The research study emphasizes the significance of public participation in integrated development planning at the local level of government in South Africa. The introduction of a democratic dispensation highlighted the idea of public participation and placed it in the spotlight. The typology is described and presented within the locus and focus of municipal strategic management, and the context and operation of development planning in the current local government dispensation. The literature review presents a theoretical analysis of the local government systems and processes necessary for enhanced citizen participation, and further examines integrated development planning as a strategic communication tool that emphasizes the social praxis of ongoing dialogue with local communities. Furthermore, a concentration on public administration within municipal strategic governance, integrated development planning and public participation will facilitate an in-depth coverage of materials relating to developmental governance within the current context in South Africa. Much has happened to affect the field of local government in South Africa. Of significance, is the impact of public participation via integrated development planning. An integrated development plan is therefore regarded as a strategic management tool that serves as a guideline and informs all planning activities, outcomes, outputs and impact of a municipality. The emphasis, therefore, of this research is centred around an evaluation of eThekwini Municipality's strategic plan focusing on public participation in its integrated development plan which feeds into its Long Term Development Plan (LTDF) for 2020, an analysis of the roles of key stakeholders in the political-management interface between the Council and local communities, and the integration of municipal resources in its long-term planning activities and developmental outcomes. This enquiry therefore culminated in an extensive literature review of municipal strategic planning in eThekwini Municipality within KwaZulu-Natal. Citizen participation through the integrated development plan ought to be viewed as simple and uncomplicated, and is aimed at increasing levels of education and literacy amongst local communities. To this end, the Municipality focuses its integrated development plan on Umsebenzi (Keeping You Informed). Through its strategic approach that "citizens are the centre of the focus, and not an add on through mere political rhetoric", the integrated development plan can serve as an archetype of strong civic-focused leadership. Moving beyond urban pathologies and local bureaucracies and despite a promising and sophisticated institutional framework for public participation, there is still a lack of participation in the local government structures. One of the factors that help to make the public participation cliché move beyond mere lip service is active engagement or holistic integration. The research examines and analyzes some of the factors for poor or non-performance in the municipal dichotomy, and the dynamics of public participation in integrated development planning amidst metropolitan urban management. The research arrays the study in a framework that leads to some key recommendations, and brings the following observations to light: • Ensure that the municipal functionaries and the local communities are oriented for more constructive and robust engagement of civil society issues; • Investment in strengthening local governing capacities because municipalities need increased emphasis on strategic planning as opposed to master-planning mechanistic models; • Focus on pragmatism and the promotion of joint learning through genuine interaction with local communities using the bottom-up approach as opposed to a top-down approach; • Undertake research and take proactive steps to manage dynamic climate change in response to economic and socio-environmental needs and sustainable development; • Facilitate social programmes which will emphasis and illustrate the potential development axis, and serve as connexions aimed at addressing grassroots issues and delivering visible and practical outcomes via the integrated development plan, and • Establishing a co-operative community culture invoked by civic pride and public involvement. From the afore-going discussion, the research emphasizes that each trait and focus of development is a distinct variable, and can lead to a new kind of experimentalism when working with local communities, which can contribute to mutual enrichment for urban efficiency and community satisfaction. The outputs of strategic interventions by municipalities affect the communities and help shape their subsequent inputs. Finally, the satisfaction of public desires depends on aspirations, as well as achievements. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2008.

This thesis is an interdisciplinary study based on the interplay between science, technology and society in order to inform the design of knowledge exploration systems. It provides a rationale for the integration of science knowledge, geographic information, with digital libraries to build knowledge and awareness about sustainability. A theoretical reconceptualization of knowledge building is provided that favours interactive engagement with information and argues against a traditional model of science production and communication that is linear and unidirectional. The elements of contextualization, classification and communication form the core of the reconceptualization. Since many information systems entrench the traditional model of science production, the three elements are considered in light of library and information science and geographic information science. The use of geographic information systems is examined to identify how they can be used as part of a social learning model for scientific, social, cultural, and environmental issues to further assist people in connecting to place and sustainability. Empirical data was collected from four case studies. One case study centred on the design and development of a web-based digital library called the Georgia Basin Digital Library, another two case studies focused on the use of part of this digital library with youth, senior and environmental groups in south-western British Columbia. The remaining case study observed a community deliberation to consider how knowledge exploration systems might support deliberation in future processes. The case study research confirms that collaborative research with communities is a fruitful way to engage with sustainability issues. Such collaborations require consideration of institutional arrangements, information collections, relationship building, technology transfer and capacity building.

Public participation is a central objective of environmental assessment process and a means by which the concerns and interests of the public are considered before a project proceeds. However, there have always been concerns as to the real influence of the public in the environmental assessment process. Using a qualitative comparative case study approach, this study considered two types of assessment established in the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, comprehensive studies and review panels, to understand which of the two process options results in more meaningful consideration of intervenor concerns. The results indicate that though proponents were responsive to intervenor comments during comprehensive studies, panel reviews resulted in more uptake of intervenor concerns. On the issue of which process option provided more opportunities for public participation, the findings suggest that there were no significant differences between the two options because the entry points for public participation were similar.

Providing opportunities for outdoor recreation and maintaining ecological integrity are primary management objectives for protected spaces in the public domain, but as visitation and visitor expectations change, a balance must be maintained between environmental and visitor use that is consistent with management goals. There is an increasing dependence on public participation in protected area management to compensate for an increasing budgetary gap between desired and actual management states. The Investigator explores how science, public perception, and collaborative relationships with stakeholders influence management planning and what the effect has been on management action. How has that balance between visitor use and environmental preservation objectives been affected? Three case study sites were selected in eastern Ontario: a national park, a provincial park, and a municipal forest. For each site, semi-structured interviews with staff and stakeholders were conducted, guiding legislation and supporting documents were analysed, and site observational evidence was collected. The data was analyzed using methodological triangulation and McCracken’s (1988) four-part method of inquiry. The results identified each site’s management goals and the management planning and action utilized to achieve those goals. The integration of environmental science and the role of public perception and participation are described as well as the nature of the management response. The discussion identifies management trends across the three governmental levels, characterising how ecological integrity and visitor use are managed, the impact of funding on management action, and the role and influence stakeholders have achieved at each site. Findings revealed trends from federal to municipal governance, principally: i) operational funding decreases; ii) the influence and dependence on public participation and stakeholder collaboration increases; iii) the importance of environmental preservation objectives decrease while ‘use’ associated objectives increase. Critically however, it was observed that when funding levels are below the threshold required to comply with stated management goals, protected area management becomes more reactive and tends to favour ‘use’ related objectives over environmental preservation objectives despite land managers’ best intentions. / Thesis (Master, Environmental Studies) -- Queen's University, 2012-09-25 08:55:09.118

The study is a monograph on participation in local government in South Africa. Participation is framed within the theoretical perspectives of representative democracy and its off-shoot, deliberative democracy. The research draws from three conceptual aspects: the main theories of democracy and participation contemplating the local sphere of government; the policy framework staging the interactions between the key participants, namely, local government and civil society formations; and the institutional spaces, values and attitudes involved therein. The problematique of the research in terms of the three conceptual aspects are: to show that representative democracy has declined in favour of participation praxis; to assess policy coherence for effective participation at the local sphere; and to examine the accommodation of new participative spaces. To this end, the research undertook an extensive literature review and an empirical study of the eThekwini Municipal Area, in the Province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The literature review indicated three learnings. Firstly, there was a decline in representative democracy, with decreasing emphasis on the electoral mode of politics. Rather, the tendency shifted towards supplementation with forms of public participation. Public participation and engagement developed into an off-shoot of representative democracy, now known pervasively as deliberative democracy and discursive democracy. The basis of these new democratic approaches means that citizens ought to have a hand in, and influence public decisions. Secondly, participation has taken new democratic forms that could be viewed alternatively as space; dialogue and deliberation; rights; development; decentralization; and accountability. Thirdly, new spaces for participation could be viewed in the form of political society and social capital vis-a-vis international agreements; poverty eradication; public administration; and the combined import of administrative law and judicial review. In terms of the aims of the study, the work revealed that the participatory framework is based upon extensive theoretical and policy understandings. Participation is adequately captured in constitutional and legislative instruments in South Africa. The Draft National Policy Framework for Public Participation, 2005 is a concrete outcome of South African local government preparedness to engage in meaningful participative discourse and praxis. In terms of the research problems of the study, the work concluded the following: • there is agreement on the part of stakeholders for engagement in parallel representative and participative forms of governance; • local government participative policy appears sound but there is a need for convergent understanding on the part of the different participants, namely, municipal councillors; community stakeholders; and actors within the municipality; and • there is evidence of contrasting debates on aspects of participatory praxis, but on the whole, participants have taken a knowledgeable and practical approach to new spaces for participation. The study makes six recommendations: •Brief and consult councillors, community stakeholders, and municipal actors on the findings of the study. (This exercise will serve two purposes, namely, to verify the findings of the study; and to develop a concrete programme for participation in the eThekwini Municipal Area, including a code of best practice). •Develop a capacity building programme on judicial review for the three categories of stakeholders, namely, municipal councillors, municipal officials, and community stakeholders. •Undertake further research on democratic participative forms at the local government level with particular focus on effective praxis through administrative justice. •Initiate developmental programmes and case studies based upon participation praxis to address the most acute problems experienced by select local communities in the eThekwini Municipal Area. •Make input into the review of provincial and local government policy processes initiated by the South African government and co-ordinated by the Department of Provincial and Local Government. • Triangulate and establish the theoretical relationships of participation, democracy and governance. The conclusions of the study reflect positively on the ideational foundations of participation and willingness of stakeholders to adopt new forms of discursive politics. The six recommendations of the work can serve to advance research and policy planning in the local government sphere in South Africa. / Thesis (DPA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2008.

Participatory Irrigation Management (PIM) was adopted in Thailand in 2004 to encourage the efficient use of water in the agricultural sector. PIM refers to the participation of water users at all phases of irrigation management such as planning, operation, maintenance, monitoring, and evaluation. The purpose of this research was to understand the relationships between public participation, learning, and the implementation of more sustainable water practices through PIM in Thailand. Two integrated water user groups (IWUGs) were selected from the Krasiew Reservoir, Suphanburi Province. Data collection included document review, semi-structured telephone interviews, semi-structured face-to-face interviews, observation, and informal meetings. Case study data showed that after the water allocation and delivery schedule were developed and agreed on by the Joint Management Committee for Irrigation members, the final water delivery pattern at each canal was made by a majority vote among members at an IWUG general meeting. The final water allocation strategy at each canal was based on a discussion among IWUG committee members. Water user group (WUG) chiefs and WUG members were responsible for designing their own water allocation pattern and schedule for ditches. Results showed that participating in PIM activities fostered both instrumental and communicative learning among PIM participants. The instrumental learning outcomes included: new skills and information; the development of political, legal, economic, social, or administrative procedures; a determination of the cause-effect relationships; and task-oriented problem solving. The communicative learning outcomes involved: a better understanding of the issue at hand; a more critical understanding of themselves or situations; insight into the interests of others; communication strategies and methods; and comparative reflection. Findings also revealed that local farmers had begun implementing more sustainable water practices after receiving comprehensive water information through PIM. This helped develop an understanding of a reservoir as a finite water resource. As a result, water saving awareness was fostered among farmers in order to maintain a water supply for all crop seasons. In addition, communicating compassionately through participating in PIM activities could foster further social action. The 2005 water crisis in the irrigation area was another factor which triggered a sense of urgency about the need for water conservation.

The Himalayan region of India is experiencing rapid development in tourism, agriculture, highway construction and hydroelectric development. This research describes and evaluates the role of public participation in tourism development projects in these high mountain environments, using the proposed Himalayan Ski Village (HSV) development in Manali as a case study. Qualitative data collected through semi-structured interviews, document reviews and participant observation revealed that there have been formal and informal opportunities for public participation in project development. The findings suggest that local people have been involved in project development activities, such as training for skiing, but not in the decision-making process related to the project. The majority of the participation activities were, in fact, instigated by the public including activities such as protests and court challenges. The findings also show that involvement in the participatory activities undertaken by the public and project proponent fostered instrumental and communicative learning outcomes.

Meaningful public engagement is a challenging, but promising, feature of strategic environmental assessment (SEA) in developing countries such as Kenya. This research examined completed Kenyan SEA and compared procedures to standard practice, with particular emphasis on public participation. Two selected SEA case studies explored the extent of participation, learning outcomes of participation, and whether the learning outcomes lead to social action for sustainability at the community level. Document reviews, participant observation, a focus group, and semi-structured interviews with environmental practitioners, government officials, and community members provided data for the thesis. The study revealed that public participation is variable amongst the completed SEAs and shows that the ideal conditions for learning in public participation were not completely fulfilled, resulting in a greater abundance of instrumental than communicative or transformative learning outcomes. Nonetheless, individual and social actions that contribute to sustainability have been taken based on the learning outcomes.