Why Our Work is Needed

Why is PEA’s work needed?

In our increasingly complex and interdependent society, it is more important than ever that government officials, as well as private sector decision makers, understand the views of those who are impacted by the decisions they make.  When there are competing interests and difficult problems to solve, it is almost impossible to make the right decisions without hearing the voices of all stakeholders. In fact, making important decisions without adequate input from the public can cause significant long-term problems which can be difficult to repair.

While getting good input from citizens is essential, much of what passes for “citizen engagement” is ineffective or even counter-productive.  For example, most public meetings consist primarily of one-way communication and have no effective means of harnessing the views of those who are present. Much of online engagement is simple data and comment gathering and often not tied to a larger engagement strategy that makes clear how public input will be used.

Public Engagement Associates combines the use of technology and innovative, yet practical, dialogue-driven methods to generate feedback that provides decision makers with better information about what members of the public actually think and want.

Armed with this information, decision makers are better equipped to act in a way that benefits those impacted by the choices they make.