Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
I suggest in
Sections 6.2.4
and
6.3.3
, by which public con
dence in
politics could be improved.
Representatives of local planning authorities would work together
with a regional planning authority to meld local proposals into a plan
that pools regional capacities for stress reduction to best effect.
127
One
way of maintaining continuity between local and regional decision-
making would be to invite those involved with local deliberations to
take part in deliberative reviews of proposals made by the regional body.
Invitations would be extended to all participants, with those who accept
being randomly selected to take part in groups made up from represen-
tatives of different communities in the region. Particular issues arising
from the regional process would be selected for debate (again following
the review by citizens
juries of initial proposals for issues to be exam-
ined). Another way of promoting continuity would be to conduct a
larger-scale exercise in which the original local groups examine draft
regional plans with a focus on how they affect the draft plans for local-
ities that were submitted for consideration under the regional planning
process. They would be asked to consider whether the reasons provided
by regional planners for departing from local proposals are valid.
Equivalent approaches could be used for the review of plans at the
national level with those involved in regional deliberations invited to
participate in reviews of issues raised by national planning, and with
local groups reviewing those aspects of national plans that further depart
fromtheiroriginalproposalsandthereasonsgivenforthisbycentral
government.
Proposals for a major scaling-up of public participation in decision-
making of the type I suggest have been criticised because of the expense
involved with arranging participatory exercises.
128
Critics also argue that
it is unrealistic to expect people to devote large amounts of time to public
matters.
129
Both of these concerns are valid and would need to be taken
into account in the design of opportunities for public participation in
decision-making under ecological governance. However, neither of them
prevents innovative democratic practices from being tested with a view
to exploring how costs and demands made on peoples
'
'
time can be kept
to a minimum, although the identi
cation of means by which the
projected bene
ts of deliberation can be realised should be the main
127
Chapter 4,
Section 4.5
.
128
Smith,
'
Democratic Innovations
'
,pp.105
-
7.
129
Ibid
., p. 26, 105
-
7.
