Public Participation, Volunteerism and Resource-Based Recreation Management in the U.S.: What Do Citizens Expect?

Citizen Involvement in the Decision-Making Processes of Environmental and Spatial Planning, and it’s Influence on Public Participation: a Case Study of Lisbon

“…In addition, it was also possible to identify other factors that are in line with findings of other authors [11,12,16,25,26,[49][50][51][52][53][54] and that can influence and constrain the ability of citizens to participate and, consequently, to exercise citizenship in these processes, such as (1) the distance from the place of residence of the locals to where the proposed meetings discussing policies will be held, (2) the geographical location where the public session occur (country or city), (3) the time spent in labor or occupations, (4) the frustration generated by non-inclusion of the suggestions made by the public and other interested parties in the decisions, (5) the lack of clear objectives and a way of monitoring the decision-making processes, and (6) the lack of investment in training the citizenship by the government. …”

Contrasting visions of science in ecological restoration: Expert-lay dynamics between professional practitioners and volunteers

“…Whereas I agree that participatory restoration programs provide great opportunities for community people to come together and care for the environment, I express reservation on equating public participation with democratic practice. Many public policy scholars have argued that public participation encompasses a wide range of engagement, from 28 low-power types of token participation to high-power types of involvement in decision-making (Arnstein, 1969;Propst et al, 2003;Stringer et al, 2006;Head, 2007). My study builds on this critical evaluation of public participation and focuses on the role of science as expression of authority, which hinders mutual engagement between volunteers and professional practitioners.…”

Participants and non-participants of place-based groups: An assessment of attitudes and implications for public participation in water resource management

“…A lack of accomplishment, clear objectives or plans, and the incorporation of monitoring and feedback in planning have, in particular, caused burnout among some participants. The exact nature of participation, especially the level of authority or decision-making power, may indeed affect the attitudes of those involved (Propst et al, 2004).…”