This Exploring Public Engagement Effectiveness in Canada Phase One Summary Report is one component of a national research program undertaken by the Inter-Council Network (ICN) of Provincial and Regional Councils for International Cooperation from 2011-2014. This program grew out of one of four recommendations made by the ICN in a position paper entitled Effectively Engaging Canadians as Global Citizens (2010) “to conduct a longitudinal study that includes Public Engagement practitioners to document, reflect upon, analyze and share learning on effective public engagement towards active global citizenship.”
The main objectives of the report are: to describe the diversity of public engagement knowledge held by practitioners; to describe the range of public engagement activities happening across Canada; to identify the common barriers public engagement practitioners face in the design, implementation and evaluation of their work; and to identify solutions public engagement practitioners see in moving forward. The findings presented are a summary of practitioners’ thoughts, opinions, and current practice, gathered over an eight-month period. The ICN is sharing these findings as a means to further discussion, enable reflection, and build capacity and good practice in public engagement towards active global citizenship in Canada.