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  My Lived Experience

  by BarbaraChappell, over 8 years ago

  This is my lived experience as a member of IAP2 written during the travel time to Denver. I was going to sanitize it a bit, but then I read Leah Jaramillo’s story and I am grateful for your honesty and telling it like it was for you. And as you write, I hope the many stories can be heard and acknowledged and with the understanding that can be gained through the shared stories, we can take the useful stuff with us as we shape our future. 

  I started work in local government in South Australia (SA) ... Continue reading

  This is my lived experience as a member of IAP2 written during the travel time to Denver. I was going to sanitize it a bit, but then I read Leah Jaramillo’s story and I am grateful for your honesty and telling it like it was for you. And as you write, I hope the many stories can be heard and acknowledged and with the understanding that can be gained through the shared stories, we can take the useful stuff with us as we shape our future. 

  I started work in local government in South Australia (SA) in 2004 as a Community Relations Officer.  It was a “dog’s breakfast” of a job and my first experience at any level of government. As the role morphed, I realised I was inadequately equipped to deal with the direction it was taking which was towards “pubic consultation” as it was known before the days of IAP2 in SA. I reached out to people working in councils and found there were a handful of people who had a keen interest in public consultation but little knowledge or experience beyond what the legislation required us to do. At the time there was only one IAP2 member in SA and she worked for the City of Adelaide. I reached out to her and she told me about IAP2 and how much she had got out of the training. So rather than try to go it alone, we made enquiries with a small group of practitioners in Sydney who met on occasions to discuss public consultation and share a wine and good food; and what brought them together was their awareness of IAP2.

  We asked them how we might go about setting up a network in SA and their approach at the time was very much the Adidas approach, “just do it”. But we were a group of community organisers and we knew if we wanted to get people involved we needed to get organised. And so we held our first professional development network event called “The Good, the Bad and how not to let it get Ugly”. The council I worked for at the time gave us the use of their auditorium for free, we charged a gold coin donation to cover catering costs and one of the people in our group let us use a case study from her council. After that, IAP2 was up and running in SA.

  Local stuff - Over the next 5 years:

  ·  we held 4 professional developments sessions a year. We used an event form that I emailed out for everyone to nominate what task they would take on such as booking a venue, catering, promotions so the workload was spread and it helped to engage new people along the way

  ·  we brought Vivien Twyford and her trainers across to SA to deliver the certificate course and they did a great job. But SA is a very conservative place and the feedback was, “the training is great, but in SA we can’t afford the eastern states prices. That is when I started to make enquiries about becoming a trainer, so I could deliver the certificate training in my home state at my home state rates

  ·  we established a relationship with the Local Government Association of South Australia and in 2007 they asked me to develop a community engagement framework for SA based on the IAP2 model which is still in place today. They continue to sponsor the Foundations training through their Training and Development Program despite external pressure to change.

  ·  we also hosted the annual IAP2 Australasia Conference in 2008 and that is where the cracks started to appear for us in SA. The previous conference was held in Melbourne and the event coordinator who was also the Secretariat came up short for the organising committee. The coordinator was good at relationships, but not so good at process, so the SA Conference Organising Committee made it clear in their project scope they wanted to go with a local event coordinator if the conference was to proceed. The project scope was ignored by the AA Board from October to February of the following year and then things got really messy. Long-story-short, the Organising Committee members felt confused and devalued by the whole process; I put in around $10,000 of my own money to the conference through lost wages and plugging financial holes created by influential individuals; the President called the AGM in Sydney the week before the conference in Adelaide rather than at the conference and consequently, our numbers were down because of the choices people had to make re: travel and accommodation; and the President did not attend the conference. I almost walked away from IAP2 after that, but I reminded myself why I joined (to further the practice of P2) and I promptly put the egos aside, including my own

  ·  I was the SA IAP2 Regional Coordinator for 5 years – during that time we built up the membership and at one point we had the highest membership in Australia. As IAP2 went through the Affiliate process and things shifted from a volunteer run organisation to a staff administration, the role of the regional volunteers changed along with the way things were run. The volunteers, who paid their membership, were now being asked to continue to do what they had always done and also pay extra fees for the privilege. Us “old timers” in the organising group had always contributed financially to local events, but the younger cash strapped members were not “buying it”. On reflection, this is probably where the shift from member organisation to business had its genesis. This is when the membership started to drop off in SA. I lost all trust in AA when the constitution was changed without the consent of the members. The shift from member organisation to a business entity was an example of DAD that I have resisted using in the training room. I became a member of the USA Affiliate in 2014.

  ·  We had a number of goes at jump starting things but things had become very NSW centric. I mentored a young woman in the role of Regional Coordinator, but she stepped away after a few months telling me she was not prepared to be treated the way she had seen me and the others treated. She used the “bully” word and in truth, there was quite a bit of that going on in Australasia.

  Training stuff - I attended my first IAP2 Conference in Montreal in 2006 and met Wendy Green Lowe. She inspired me to become a trainer and when I got back to Adelaide I knew I had to apply to the training academy. I was over the moon when I was accepted and I can remember my daughter thinking I had injured myself because I was jumping around our kitchen screaming with joy.

  I went through the academy with Richard Delaney, Margie Harvie, John Ross, Michelle Feenan, Amanda Newbery, Gerard Reilly, Ruth Yabes, Jane Kuchins, Brenda Walton and Stuart Waters.

  It was tough going in those first few years as I worked at gaining a better understanding of the materials and making them my own. After a few years, I realised the students were entering the training with higher levels of P2 knowledge than when I first started delivering. I think this is a testament to the influence IAP2 has had on the practice of P2 in Australia. In response to this realisation, I completed post graduate studies in Dialogue, Deliberation and Public Engagement (DDPE) through the Fielding Graduate University USA in 2010 to increase my knowledge & abilities to contribute to the improvement of public participation training and facilitation across South Australia. I was granted an Internship for the 2013/14 DDPE program at Kansas State University which really helped me to appreciate the complexity of P2. I bring this additional knowledge into my delivery of the Foundations Program.

  In 2009 I became a EOP2 trainer; I have been on the Training Advisory Committee (TAC) for the past few years and this year I am privileged to be a T3 Trainer for the Candidate Trainers Pilot 2017.

  Around 2011, the call was sent out for trainers to take part in the Innovations Project, i.e. a project to revise the certificate program which resulted in the development of the IAP2 Foundations Program. Doesn’t sound too bad when you write it like this, but it was not good! Bottom line here – the organisation didn’t use the decision making model we teach and encourage others to use; the key stakeholders (trainers) were not invited to the party; and a person without project management skills was appointed to lead the project. Again, long-story-short, the project got messy and came to a halt. A review of the project took place and in June 2013, 15 trainers met in LA in a show of goodwill to get the Innovation Project back on track.

  If you are still reading by this stage – thank you for hanging in with me.

  There were lots of things that came out of the LA Trainers Forum, but one thing is for sure, the trainers involved worked their butts off to bring the materials up to date; and all done on volunteer’s hours. All in, I personally volunteered over 3 years to the project.

  Then just as the Foundations Program was about to be launched, IAP2 Australasia (AA) launched an Australasian Certificate. That might have been okay if the following hadn’t happened:

  ·  IAP2 Australasia announced in April 2014 the following:

  “The IAP2 Federation recently informed us that they would cease to offer the existing Certificate in Public Participation globally from 30 June 2014. Yesterday, the Board of IAP2 Australasia decided that the Australasian Affiliate will not be scheduling or promoting the updated Foundations training program which we understand you are licensed to deliver from 1 July  2014”. This means that if you intend to deliver the new International Foundations Training Program, you will be responsible for all aspects of promotion and scheduling”.

  ·  There was no transition period, so I had been training for AA rather than promoting and delivering my own training, so I (along with other trainers) was left with a big gap to deal with

  ·  There was an “however” though:

  “However, we would like to invite you to be part of the new IAP2 Australasian Engagement Trainer Program, which is the proposed process for professional development and subsequent licensing of trainers as appropriate”.

  ·  This meant that although I had already put in the hard yards gaining my training licenses, and spent time and money, I was expected to do it all over again. I was not offered any prior learning status or discount for attending training to get myself up to speed with the Australasian certificate

  ·  The 5 trainers who continue to this day to deliver the Foundations Program in Australia felt let down by the trainers in Australia who it appears knew how things were unfolding and did not share that with us. Sadly, there has been a rift between us all since then.

  ·  While trainers have continued to pay a license fee to the Federation for delivery of the Foundations Program, AA does not pay anything to the Federation for delivery of their certificate program. For this reason I will not deliver the AA certificate. It is at odds with my values and unethical. The explanation given for non-payment of fees is that the AA certificate was developed by AA. However, it is delivered under the IAP2 brand and without that, it would take a lot to break into the training market.

  Other  stuff - Okay, I am just about finished this part of the story. I have been asked over the years, “What makes IAP2 unique”? My response is that we have 3 Foundations that guide our organisation, i.e. the Core Values, the Spectrum of Participation and the Code of Ethics. I don’t just know about these foundations and teach them, I also apply them to my practice. I find it unethical and unfair to take the generosity and hard work of volunteers and profit from it. I did say this was going to be an account of my lived experience of being an IAP2 member. So in my opinion, if we tolerate behaviour that does not support our practice of participation, we have no right to hold ourselves up as leaders in public participation. 

  I almost walked away again this year, but I reminded myself again of why I joined (to further the practice of P2) and that is what this week will be about in my story.

  Quote: “Choose to be optimistic, it feels better.” – Dalai Lama XIV

  Cheers

  Barbara
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  A roller coaster journey and I've enjoyed the ride

  by Vivien Twyford, over 8 years ago

  I wrote this story last week, but then managed to lose it before sending, so I'm trying again. 

  I have a 20 year history with IAP2. Not as long as some, but a lot longer than many. My first connection was the Toronto conference in 1997 that I attended as part of a very small Australasian group. I think there were 3 of us there and my strongest memory is my delight in finding myself for 3 days in the company of 300 or more like minded people, where I didn't have to explain what I did! I learned a... Continue reading

  I wrote this story last week, but then managed to lose it before sending, so I'm trying again. 

  I have a 20 year history with IAP2. Not as long as some, but a lot longer than many. My first connection was the Toronto conference in 1997 that I attended as part of a very small Australasian group. I think there were 3 of us there and my strongest memory is my delight in finding myself for 3 days in the company of 300 or more like minded people, where I didn't have to explain what I did! I learned a lot over those days and made many friends. My colleague, Jill Hannaford, and I decided after our return to Australia, that we would invite some other practitioners together to assess the level of interest in establishing the first IAP2 Chapter outside North America. Nine of us met in a Board room in Sydney and the Australasian Chapter was born. We were amazed when 80 people turned up at our first event. I accepted the role of inaugural President, which I held for the next 3 years, during which we ran two well attended Australasian conferences and many local events in Sydney. We grew our membership and learned more about what people working in this field wanted and needed from a professional association.

  A number of us from the Australasian Chapter attended international conferences in North America. Jill went to Arizona in 1998 and several of us went to Banff in 1999, which was an amazing experience. I remember so many high points from that conference, professional learning, personal relationship building and having fun in the Canadian Rockies. We Australians started seeking representation on the International Board around that time. Jill Hannaford was the first Board Member, and I joined the Board in 2001. 

  I attended the Vancouver conference in 2001 where I took my first IAP2 training: Foundations with Wendy Lowe and Planning with Lewis Michaelson. I agreed to be part of a small team of 5 who would develop the 2-day P2 Techniques Course, that with Communications for P2, would form the IAP2 Certificate Course. In 2002 we presented the Techniques course successfully in Salt Lake City, and I took the Communications Course, so was among the first IAP2 members to complete the new Certificate. This enabled me to seek IAP2 trainer status and take the IAP2 Certificate to Australasia. I did my practicum with some volunteer students and sent the video to the Training Chair, LaVerne Kyriss. I then presented the whole Certificate to a group of people at NSW Health as my first official professional IAP2 training in Australasia, and in 2003 took IAP2 training to groups in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, Perth and Auckland New Zealand. 

  I joined a group of trainers in Denver in 2003 where we reviewed and overhauled the Certificate Course to make in into one coherent whole, rather than 4 separate courses. I continued to train the certificate until 2012 and took it to Singapore and the UK as well as Australia and New Zealand, and IAP2 conferences.  I became a Master Trainer and helped a number of people to become IAP2 trainers in South Africa, New Zealand and Australia through an Academy and practicums.

  After serving on the International Board from 2002 and 2003, I was asked to take on the role of President in 2004 which I did, with a number of new faces taking on useful roles that year. It meant lots of travelling for me as Board meetings were held in Honolulu, Madison and Portland?  I built ongoing relationships with colleagues through these Board meetings as well as co-training and presenting at conferences in Ottawa in 2003, Madison in 2004, Sydney and Portland in 2005, and Glasgow in 2008.

  My last few years have been less active in the association, although I've stayed on the periphery.  I left the International Board at the end of 2005 and retired as a trainer in 2012. However the friendships, and all that I learned as an IAP2 member, trainer, master trainer and Board member, have been immensely valuable to my professional and personal life. I'm delighted to be attending both the conference and the Federation workshops in Denver in this my 21st year of membership of IAP2.
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  My perspective

  by leahjaramillo, over 8 years ago

  As a young P2 practitioner, I was so pleased to take the IAP2 Foundations training and learn about best practices in the field. This amazing experience encouraged me to become a member, get engaged in the Intermountain Chapter and begin taking additional trainings. I felt like I had found "my people."

  Several years later I attended the IAP2 conference in San Diego. I was excited to attend my first professional (non-academic) conference, to learn and grow and network with my peers and mentors. There I learned about the planned change to the Federation model. It was very disappointing and alienating... Continue reading

  As a young P2 practitioner, I was so pleased to take the IAP2 Foundations training and learn about best practices in the field. This amazing experience encouraged me to become a member, get engaged in the Intermountain Chapter and begin taking additional trainings. I felt like I had found "my people."

  Several years later I attended the IAP2 conference in San Diego. I was excited to attend my first professional (non-academic) conference, to learn and grow and network with my peers and mentors. There I learned about the planned change to the Federation model. It was very disappointing and alienating to me as a young member to encounter the organizational drama and disarray associated with that change. Instead of being able to network with other practitioners and learn from those who had been in the organization for longer than I, I found my potential mentors distracted and my peers disengaged or in the process of "checking out."

  After the conference and through the ensuing the membership engagement process, I saw a lot of our members drop out. Our chapter activities dropped off in part because our leadership was burned out. I had a hard decision to make. Do I leave the organization where I feel at home? or do I throw my energy into it and try to help? Clearly I went with the latter...in no small part due to the mentorship I experienced from my trainer and mentor Wendy Lowe.

  Wendy encouraged me to run for chapter leadership and then Salt Lake City was selected for the 2013 North American conference. I volunteered to co-chair the conference to try to reinvigorate our chapter and find a way to create the experience I had hoped to have in San Diego. This leadership opportunity turned into another as I was recruited to the US board of directors and then into an executive committee position. I am now serving my 4th of 5 years on the board and my second year as US President.

  I've learned a lot during my tenure on the board, more so than can be shared here, but I'll share a few key points.

  1) the people who volunteer for IAP2 leadership roles truly care about the democratic values expressed in the Core Values

  2) the experience represented across IAP2 leadership is valuable and insightful

  3) IAP2 members deeply care about the organization and their role in it.

  4) IAP2 USA membership is changing from primarily practitioners to include a much larger percentage of people who only touch P2 as part of their overall responsibilities.

  IAP2 USA and its board have worked incredibly hard to rebound from the organizational change. We have  recovered from our original decline in membership and continue to grow rapidly. We are developing new programs, trainings and services. We are working our volunteers for every ounce of energy they have and still find deficits in our bandwidth. Our hard-working staff are amazing and manage to outperform our expectations, but we could certainly use more revenue to support them and more staff to augment their abilities. Our board, committees, staff and volunteers endeavor to develop member services, programs and training to adapt to the needs of our changing member demographics and expand our reach into new areas of the US. 

  I hope that these meetings and whatever the resulting process may be will help the organization find a steady footing and be able to focus on building the greater good together. I also hope that we can acknowledge the history of the organization, acknowledge points of contention and then move forward together to support our members, expand our reach and improve access to decision-making around the world.

  I look forward to meeting you all. Cheers,

  Leah Jaramillo - IAP2 USA President