VOLUME 5 (2009), ISSUE 1, Essays	<Previous Essay
Democratizing Public Consultation Processes: Some Critical Insights Patricia Ballamingie, Carleton University SUGGESTED CITATION: Patricia Ballamingie (2009) "Democratizing Public Consultation Processes: Some Critical Insights," Journal of Public Deliberation: Vol. 5: No. 1, Article 11. http://services.bepress.com/jpd/vol5/iss1/art11	Download this article (140 K, PDF) Tell a Colleague Get Acrobat Reader Printing Tip: Select the option to 'print as image' in the Acrobat print dialog to ensure the article prints as it appears on screen. Learn more...
Critical analysis of the Ontario government’s Lands for Life public consultation process uncovers the myriad ways in which the government put forward an economistic construct of Crown land, privileging industrial interests over all others. By reflecting on how this process went awry, future consultation processes might be further democratized, such that they would stand up to ethical scrutiny. This paper details several prescriptive suggestions and reflections as constructive input towards democratizing future land use planning processes. Specifically, it addresses a number of considerations that might be taken into account when posing the following questions: Who should consult the public? Who should be consulted? What should they be asked? And how should they be asked? Moving along the continuum towards greater inclusivity of marginalized social actors, representing a broader range interests, and mitigating power differentials ensures at the very least a more robust and deliberative democracy. This analysis challenges the entrenched government-industry collusion that has now become so prevalent, and explores how practices of ecological citizenship can be either promoted or constrained by the state.
Readers' Reactions No readers' reactions have been posted for this article. To submit one, copy the URL for this article (http://services.bepress.com/jpd/vol5/iss1/art11) and click here.