Montgomery Planning builds mutual trust and respect with communities, organizations, businesses, and individuals. Through an open, transparent, and equitable process community members can achieve a high degree of confidence in the process and know that their contribution will have an impact. Community members will be heard and, through the planning process, Montgomery Planning will work to address concerns, deficiencies, and opportunities in their community through the following actions.
- Create a more efficient, equitable, and effective community outreach and engagement process.
- Determine the appropriate level and type of community engagement for the goals and phases of each plan.
- Identify audiences and other stakeholders to engage.
- Develop outreach and engagement that is consistent, respectful of stakeholder needs, and on-brand.
- Provide information and engagement that is designed to engage traditionally underrepresented communities.
- Clearly identify the resources needed to do successful outreach and engagement.
- Establish timelines and delineate responsible parties.
- Provide staff with the knowledge, training, experience, resources, and internal support needed.
- Identify and track performance measures, consistent data to inform current and future planning efforts.
It is critical that we take an equitable approach because our planning recommendations rely on community input in addition to the expertise of our planners and data sources. The goal of having equitable engagement is to get to equitable recommendations. Community input helps shape outcomes. Equitable engagement seeks to reverse historical trends by leveraging a more equitable, efficient, and effective community outreach and engagement process that makes it easy for all residents, business owners, and leaders to understand, value, and take part in the planning process.
Montgomery Planning’s Communications Approach to Equity
With equity as a priority for Montgomery Planning and the county, our communications approach provides an opportunity to model how we want to be in relationship with one another in our county community. As such, communications planning and implementation will continue to consider equity in all outreach and engagement so that all members of our community can shape our county’s future. The following principles guide our communications approach to equity:
Montgomery Planning is committed to better understanding our diverse audiences so that we may meet them where they are and create messages, information, and outreach and engagement strategies that include all residents in the planning process, especially those who have been historically excluded or experienced barriers to participation.
Community members are not likely to participate in planning processes if they do not believe that their participation can influence the decisions, plans, and policies. Therefore, we must honor people’s time and capacity for participation, taking an audience-centric approach to honest and transparent outreach and engagement. This includes building awareness of and trust in Montgomery Planning with ongoing communications to clarify Montgomery Planning’s role and value to all stakeholders and to increase equitable community stakeholder engagement with the planning process.
While there is urgency behind our efforts to create more equitable outreach and engagement, we celebrate learning while doing, constantly building, and evolving as we learn more about and from community members. We must develop short- and long-term strategies, making meaningful progress each day.
Equitable outreach and engagement require thoughtful planning and cooperation among planners and communications staff. This starts with identifying and understanding distinct audiences, then clearly defining desired outcomes so that we may develop appropriate and targeted strategies to design and activate equitable, audience-focused outreach and engagement. An outcomes-focus is also needed to measure our efforts and progress to develop best practices further and identify opportunities for improvement.
To achieve equity, Montgomery Planning must work with a network of partners: institutions, other government agencies, community-based organizations, businesses, education, nonprofits, and others to reach and engage diverse audiences so that they may inform and strengthen our work.
Engagement Goals
Our plans create a vision for the community – whether that community is the entire county or a specific neighborhood. Through all of our plans, both big and small, Montgomery Planning engages the community throughout the process so that we can create a shared vision for the future. The primary goal of Montgomery Planning’s community engagement process is to ensure that community members are constructively and meaningfully involved in the decisions that shape their communities and to increase trust, communication, and understanding between the community and Montgomery Planning.
Transparency
Community members have a clear understanding of the scope of the plan, the schedule, possible outcomes, and their role throughout the process. People also understand the role, responsibilities, and limitations of Montgomery Planning. They understand how and why community input is or is not reflected in the recommendations of the plan.
Inclusion
All communities who may be affected by the plan are actively involved in the community engagement process. Community members share different experiences, perspectives, and expertise. Community participants are reflective of the population, sharing relevant characteristics of the population and including groups who have been historically or systematically excluded from past planning efforts. Montgomery Planning elevates these historically marginalized voices and histories to correct disparities in influence and outcomes that perpetuate inequities.
Mutual Learning
We learn from community members’ lived experiences to help identify barriers, opportunities, and strengths that need to be addressed or elevated through the planning process. As Montgomery Planning incorporates the experiences and ideas of community members, we also strive to educate community members about the master plan process, timeline, planning concepts and ideas, as well as share data and analysis. The exchange of information and ideas creates a shared understanding and a fully informed community that knows how its county government works and understands its planning process.
Shared Vision
Participants move towards identifying shared values and desired outcomes. Through informed deliberation, community members and Montgomery Planning develop a shared understanding and vision for the future.
Community Influence
Participation has a tangible and apparent impact on outcomes; it is tracked, measured, and assessed transparently. Ideas garnered through the community engagement process are reflected in the plan and community members can trace their influence – even if not all ideas are included in the plan. Public servants, other organizations, and citizens themselves take action (often in collaborative or coordinated ways) during the plan process or plan implementation to address key issues and opportunities identified through the process.
Increased Community Capacity
Participants are given adequate information and resources to participate meaningfully and equitably. They understand the planning process and have a shared sense of ownership of and commitment to the process and outcome. Community members endorse decisions and actions by Montgomery Planning because decisions clearly reflect public participation in a transparent engagement process. They understand how and feel equipped to track plan implementation, collaborate on future projects, and advocate for policies.
Build Trust
Montgomery Planning builds mutual trust and respect with communities, organizations, businesses, and individuals. Through an open, transparent, and equitable process community members can achieve a high degree of confidence in the process and know that their contribution will have an impact. Community members will be heard and, through the planning process, Montgomery Planning will work to address concerns, deficiencies, and opportunities in their community.
Government Alliance on Racial Equity (GARE) equity tool
Montgomery Planning staff use an equity lens for master plans and policies. The internal Equity Peer Review Group uses the Government Alliance on Racial Equity (GARE) equity tool when reviewing plans and policies. Download a printer-friendly version of the GARE equity tool.
Desired Results
What are the desired results and outcomes of the decision? What is your vision and desired state of being for all?
Analysis of Data
What is the data and what does it tell us? This is about identifying who is most negatively impacted and looking at REGGIIA (race, ethnicity, gender, geography, income, immigrant status).
Community Engagement
How have communities been engaged? Are there opportunities to expand engagement? Consider shifting power to those most impacted.
Strategies for Racial Equity
Who will benefit from or be burdened by the decision? What are your strategies for advancing racial equity or mitigating unintended consequences? This is informed by desired results, data and engagement and it’s important to have metrics.
Implementation Plan
What is the plan for implementation? How are impacted people of color centered in leading the change and implementing the policy? There needs to be a task for each strategy, considering resources and using a checklist to ask these questions.
Communications + Accountability
How will you ensure accountability, communicate and evaluate results? This is about forming a messaging and documenting the impact.