Participation

Openresearch editorial board

Dossier openresearch.amsterdam

Participation is a widely used term that can have different meanings depending on the context. In this dossier, participation refers to "the process by which individuals, groups and organizations influence and share control over collective issues, decisions or services that affect them" (Visser, Popering-Verker and Van Buuren 2019). Transfer of influence and/or control and the element of "collectivity" are important in this definition. Many of the building blocks can be traced back to the article "A ladder of citizen participation" by the American sociologist Sherry Arnstein. In this dossier, you will find an overview of participation policies in Amsterdam and the forms of participation that can be seen in the city; think of citizens' councils or neighborhood law. Designing a participation process can be complex, due to different goals, stakeholders, phases and timing. In the collection "Handbooks for Participation" you will find a collection of design principles that you can start working with right away. Want to know more about the different, underlying, elements of participation? Take a look at the 'Research on Participation' collection. There you will find, among other things, the dissertation 'In gesprek of uitgepraat?' (Blijenberg 2021), about the role of friction in participation, dilemmas in participation or about the (new) relationship between government and citizens. *** This file is a work in progress. Anything missing? Let our editors know! Mail to: openresearch@amsterdam.nl (May, 2024) ***