The Power of Democratic Governance: Engaging Citizens as Partners
April 21-23, 2005 - Hyatt Regency Hotel - New Orleans , Louisiana
Co-Sponsored by the Louisiana Municipal Association and the Kentucky League of Cities
Download Seminar Brochure pdf
Cities are in the midst of a fundamental shift in the way that citizens and government work together. Frustrated with traditional politics, local leaders are placing a greater emphasis on mobilizing citizens in an effort to make decisions, overcome conflicts, and solve crucial public problems. In the process, democratic governance is becoming clearer and more prominent in our local communities.
Power of Democratic Governance
Strengthening democratic governance at the local level is vital to addressing the main problems facing our communities today. Through civic engagement and collaborative decision-making, our communities are better able to build their democratic problem-solving capacity.
Engaging Citizens as Partners
Local leaders are engaging citizens and community organizations as partners in problem-solving and decision-making. What are the factors driving this trend? What are the benefits and challenges of this work? These growing challenges require proactive efforts, collective wisdom and creativity by both citizens and local community leaders.
Build a Strategy for Better Governance
Discover how you can engage citizens in an exciting and productive way to solve these challenges and frustrations. Identify vital issues in your community. Learn to design and analyze a process that will best work to help solve crucial public problems in your community. Build a strategy for better and more successful democratic governance in your community.
Core Competency: Collaborator/Catalyst? 8 Credits in the Certificate of Achievement in Leadership program
LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE PRESENTERS?
Benjamin R. Barber brings an abiding concern for democracy and citizenship to issues of politics, culture and education in America and abroad as an internationally renowned political theorist. Barber is author of 17 books including the classic Strong Democracy (1984 and reissued 2004), Fear?s Empire: War, Terrorism and Democracy (2003), and The Truth of Power: Intellectual Affairs in the Clinton White House (2001). He frequently writes for Harper's Magazine, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, The Nation, LeNouvel Observateur, Die Zeit, La Repubblica, El Pais and many other scholarly and popular publications in America and Europe. For television, he co-wrote the prize-winning CBS/PBS ten-part series The Struggle for Democracy (1988, re-released 2000).
Angela Glover Blackwell, a renowned community building activist and advocate, is president and founder of PolicyLink. Blackwell served as senior vice president of the Rockefeller Foundation overseeing its Domestic and Cultural divisions. She developed Rockefeller?s Building Democracy Division, which focused on race and policy. She is co-author of Searching for the Uncommon Common Ground: New Dimensions on Race in America (2002). Blackwell gained national recognition as founder of the Oakland, CA Urban Strategies Council where she pioneered new approaches to neighborhood revitalization.
James C. Hunt is a five-term council member and former Mayor of Clarksburg, WV. Hunt currently serves as the Second Vice-President of NLC and has held several local, state and national leadership positions. During his 17 year tenure as a local elected official in Clarksburg, he served key leadership roles in numerous successful community projects such as the FBI relocation, the new Municipal Building and improved employee benefits that have had a dramatic impact on the lives of the citizens of Clarksburg. Hunt serves as Manager of the Clarksburg Office for the West Virginia Housing Development Fund.
James J. Petijean is the Mayor of the City of Rayne, LA and currently serves as the President of the Louisiana Municipal Association. Petitjean became LMA President in August 2004 after having served terms as LMA First Vice President, LMA Second Vice President and as District Vice President on the LMA Executive Board. Petitjean also serves as President and Trustee on the Board of Directors of LMA?s Risk Management, Inc.; he continues his service on the Board of Directors of Louisiana Municipal Advisory and Technical Services, Inc.; and he serves on the LMA-Louisiana Association of Chiefs of Police Joint Committee.
Clarence E. Anthony was elected Mayor of South Bay, FL in 1984, where he has been an advocate for the voiceless and impoverished citizens of his region winning many awards including that of 'Best Community Leader.' Mayor Anthony contributed to the NLC Futures Report entitled, Connecting Citizens and Their Government: Civility, Responsibility, and Local Democracy. In 1999, Anthony became President of the National League of Cities, a responsibility that he assumed with enthusiasm and pride because it enabled him to act on behalf of communities and its citizens.
John Ott is a nationally recognized authority on organizational and community change. He has designed and facilitated myriad small and large-scale change efforts, including processes to help hundreds of city, county, and statewide efforts across the country to improve outcomes of community well-being. Ott has been a lecturer of Public Policy Studies at Duke University, and was co-founder and Associate Director of the Leadership Program from 1985-89. John has organized and led several non-profit organizations, including a micro-enterprise project and an affordable housing initiative.
The Power of Democratic Governance: Engaging Citizens as Partners
The preliminary schedule of events (subject to change)?
Thursday, April 21st
2:00 ? 6:00 p.m. Registration
6:00 p.m. Reception
Friday, April 22nd
8:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast
8:30 - 10:00 a.m. The Evolution of Democratic Governance:
Why Civic Engagement is Important to Its Success
10:15 - 12:00 noon The State of Civic Engagement
12:00 - 1:30 p.m. Lunch
1:30 - 3:00 p.m. Strategizing for Better Governance
3:15 - 5:15 p.m. Concurrent workshops
A: Democratic Participation and Civic Culture: Engaging Citizens
and Easing Tension in Local Land Use
B: Mobilizing Citizens for Problem Solving
C: Building Neighborhood Structures: The Experience of San Jose and Rochester
Saturday, April 23rd
8:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast
8:30 - 10:30 a.m. Concurrent Workshops
A: Democratic Participation and Civic Culture: Engaging Citizens
and Easing Tension in Local Land Use
B: Mobilizing Citizens for Problem Solving
C: Building Neighborhood Structures: The Experience of San Jose and Rochester
10:45 - 12:00 noon Engaging the Complexity of Democratic Governance Efforts: Hands on Simulation
12:00 - 1:30 p.m. Lunch
1:30 - 3:00 p.m. The Call to Local Officials
3:00 - 3:45 p.m. Open Roundtable Panel Discussion
Registration:
The registration fee includes the full two-day training program and five meal functions and breaks, including a reception, two continental breakfasts, and two lunches. The Spouse/Guest registration fee includes all of the meal functions.
Early Bird Registration (faxed or postmarked by January 30, 2005)
____ $295 Member City
____ $ 95 Spouse/Guest Fee
Advance Registration (faxed or postmarked by March 1, 2005)
____ $345 Member City
____ $125 Spouse/Guest Fee
Late Registration (faxed or postmarked after March 1, 2005)
____ $395 Member City
____ $145 Spouse/Guest Fee
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For more information, call (202) 626-3128 or email Crislyn Lumia at lumia@nlc.org