1. First Meeting of Project Advisory Group, University College Cork
27th June 2017

2. Introduction
Evidence-based Research for Policy and Society: A Critical Evaluation of the implications of Participatory Governance for Civic Engagement and the State.
Two years duration, January 2017-January 2019.
Project team: Catherine Forde and Mark Cullinane.

3. Central Research Questions
What is participatory governance and what is its relationship to community participation?
What are the goals of participatory governance, and what forms does it take?
What principal forms of participatory governance are used by the Irish central and local state?
What are the outcomes of participatory governance in Ireland? Is it effective in achieving key goals, including participative and deliberative engagement, transparency and accountability, and democratic legitimacy?
Are there optimal, sustainable participatory forms for developing community capacity, meeting the governance requirements of third sector organisations and of local and central government and achieving good practice in participatory governance?

4. Project Aims
Identify and critically analyse the characteristics of the related concepts of participatory governance and community (citizen) participation.
Critically analyse current Irish government policy and practice on participatory governance.
Investigate how developments in state policy on participatory governance have influenced citizen and community participation in the third sector viz. community, voluntary and local development organisations that are funded or part-funded by the Irish state.
Critically evaluate how participatory governance operates in third sector organisations, in terms of participatory forms, effectiveness and outcomes.
Explore whether participatory governance is effective in achieving key goals, including participative and deliberative engagement, transparency and accountability, and democratic legitimacy.

5. Project Work Plan
Conduct a systematic review of the literature on participatory governance (January-June 2017).
Review current Irish government policy and practice on participatory governance (duration of project).
Design and carry out qualitative and quantitative research, including an electronic survey of community, voluntary and local development organisations; interviews and focus groups with these organisations and representatives of local and central government; and a set of case studies of the operation of participatory governance in third sector organisations (July 2017-September 2018).
Disseminate the results via a range of forms, including a research report aimed at a range of audiences, a policy symposium at the end of the research term, a project website and journal articles (January ).

6. Participatory Governance

7. Participatory Governance
Participatory governance refers to institutional or state-led participatory processes that facilitate citizen voice in decision-making and policy-making processes and citizen engagement with policy- makers (Wampler and McNulty, 2011; Speer, 2012). Forms of participatory governance include deliberative forums such as citizen and community assemblies, governance networks and public consultations (Skelcher and Torfing, 2010).

8. Reasons for Development of Participatory Governance
McInerney and Adshead (2010) suggest that there are four distinct rationales or bases for the development of more participatory governance forms:
Democratic: PG as the enhancement of democracy; how can participatory governance contribute to a more substantive democracy?
Public administration: PG as a means to reform of public administration.
Social inclusion: PG as a way to encourage social inclusion and combat exclusion.
Public policy: PG as a means to advance public policy e.g. promotion of active citizenship.

9. Types of Participatory Governance
In-house: located within government structures e.g. SPCs; RAPID.
Moving towards governance ‘out there’: development of structures outside of local government but with strong connections to it e.g. city and county development boards; (more recently) children and young people services committees.
Participatory governance ‘out there’: decision-making with limited involvement by traditional government institutions e.g. area-based partnerships; LEADER.
Civil society organisations and their own governance arrangements (McInerney and Adshead, 2010).

10. Participatory Governance in Ireland
Participatory governance has been a consistent feature of Irish public policy since the early 1990s. The first significant manifestations of participatory or ‘negotiated governance’ (Donoghue and Larragy, 2010) developed in the early 1990s with the establishment of national and local social partnership arrangements that brought together state, employer and third sector interests in the pursuit of common policy and development goals (Forde, 2009). While the policy and practice of Irish participatory governance have been described and defended in the literature (O’Donnell, 2002; 2008), they have also been heavily criticised (Meade, 2005; Gaynor, 2011; Murphy, 2011; Community Work Ireland, 2015) on the grounds that they co-opt civil society and reduce its autonomy. In addition, there has been relatively little empirical research on the policy and practice of participatory governance in Ireland and none on the most recent policy developments.

11. Participatory Governance in Ireland
White Paper Better Local Government: A Programme for Change (1996): The White Paper sought integration or alignment between the local government and local development systems, which consisted of a range of social partnership arrangements including area-based partnerships.
White Paper Supporting Voluntary Activity (2000): This White Paper sought to formalise the state-third sector relationship and develop a ‘consultative, participative and facilitative’ relationship between the state and the third sector (Donoghue and Larragy, 2010, p. 117).
Local Government Reform Act 2014: This Act continued the policy of alignment by establishing Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) in local government areas. Members of these committees are from local government, state agencies, business and third sector groups; their functions are to coordinate publicly-funded community and local development programmes that are delivered by a range of third sector organisations.
Framework Policy Our Communities: A Framework Policy for Local and Community Development in Ireland (2015): This policy commits to improving ‘democratic accountability’ (p. 11) and ‘community engagement and participation in policy development, planning and delivery’ (p. 15) through the operation of LCDCs and Public Participation Networks (PPNs) in each local government area.

12. Participatory Governance in Ireland
Rationale for participatory governance in Ireland: Each of the four rationales for PG has been evident, some simultaneously, but the primary rationale has changed over time; recently an emphasis on PG for democracy and social inclusion appears to have given way to an emphasis on public administration and public policy delivery. Types of participatory governance in Ireland: From an expansive movement towards participatory governance ‘out there’, in recent years there has been a retraction towards ‘in-house’ forms of governance or forms that have strong connections to local government e.g. LCDCs.

13. Focus of the Project Recognition of
the need for governance approaches that ensure both ‘representative working institutions, and…for mobilized and demand-making civil society’ (Gaventa, 2002, p. 28).
operation of PG at the local level, and the impact on local and community development and engagement, while recognising the connections between national and local policy.
both intra-organisational governance and inter- organisational governance.
recent developments, including governance in the context of changing policy, including Our Communities: A Framework Policy for Local and Community Development in Ireland (2015).

14. Methodology and Timescale

15. Methodology: Primary Research
Online survey and analysis of survey data (September- December 2017). Aim: to seek information on key characteristics of the organisations, particularly their participatory governance arrangements.
Focus groups and interviews with representatives of third sector organisations and local and central government, and conduct of two case studies of participatory governance practice (December 2017-September 2018). Aim: To expand on the survey results, to gain different perspectives on PG and to explore PG in depth.
Dissemination of findings (January 2018-December 2018 and beyond). 
Production of research report and shortened version of report for a non-policy audience (October-December 2018)
Organisation of a policy symposium (December 2018).

16. Focus of the Primary Research
Various studies have focused on measuring governance e.g. McGee and Gaventa (2011) isolate a set of state-side and citizen-side factors that assist in leading to effective governance.
State-side/Supply
level of democratisation
level of political will
Enabling legal frameworks, incentives and sanctions.
Citizen-side/Demand
Capabilities of citizens and CSOs to take up governance opportunities
Degree to which governance opportunities are part of multi-stranded and collective strategies
Engagement of citizens in the development of governance policies and practices, rather than just in their implementation.

17. Focus of the Primary Research
McInerney and Adshead (2010) looked at:
The environment in which governance take splace
Approaches to management of the governance process
Presence of shared values, norms and understandings
Approaches to communication including dialogues and deliberation
Experiences of trust and investment in relationship building
Legitimacy and accountability
Inclusiveness i.e. commitment to ensuring participation outcomes
Institutional flexibility and potential for institutional change
Approaches to addressing differences in power.

18. Some points for discussion
Perspectives on/attitudes towards the concept of participatory governance.
What aspects/elements of participatory governance or governance need to be explored?
Research methodology or approach.
How this research can inform or feed into policy-making.

19. References
Donoghue, F. and Larragy, J. (2010) ‘Changing State-Civil Society relationships in Ireland’ in B. Gidron and M. Bar (eds) Policy Initiatives towards the Third Sector in International Perspective, Springer. Forde, C., O'Byrne, D. and O hAdhmaill, F. (2016) 'Community Development in Ireland under Austerity and Local Government Change: Policy and Practice' In: Proceedings of the Conference 'The Changing Landscape of Local and Community Development in Ireland'. Cork: Centre for Co-operative Studies and School of Applied Social Studies, UCC. Gaventa, J. (2004) ‘Towards Participatory Governance: Assessing the Transformative Possibilities’ in S. Hickey and G. Mohan (eds) Participation: From Tyranny to Transformation? London: Zed Books. McGee, R. and Gaventa (2011) Shifting Power? Assessing the Impact of Transparency and Accountability Initiatives, Brighton: Institute of Development Studies. McInerney, C. and Adshead, M. (2010) The Challenge of Community Participation in the Delivery of Public Services: Exploring Local Participatory Governance in Ireland, Dublin: NESF. Wampler, B. and McNulty, S. (2011) Does Participatory Governance Matter? Exploring the Nature and Impact of Participatory Reforms, Washington, DC: Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.