Public Engagement, Local Policies, and Citizens’ Participation: An Italian Case Study of Civic Collaboration
Since the 1990s, the theme of participation has come to the fore in international debates regarding at least three critical issues: the relationship between representative democracy and deliberative democracy and the possibility of citizens’ empowerment through their involvement in policy making; th...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SAGE Publishing
2016-08-01
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| Series: | Social Media + Society |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305116662187 |
| _version_ | 1818035380901904384 |
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| author | Roberta Bartoletti Franca Faccioli |
| author_facet | Roberta Bartoletti Franca Faccioli |
| author_sort | Roberta Bartoletti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Since the 1990s, the theme of participation has come to the fore in international debates regarding at least three critical issues: the relationship between representative democracy and deliberative democracy and the possibility of citizens’ empowerment through their involvement in policy making; the role of communication and of digital media in promoting new forms of participation; the feeling of disaffection toward politics and of democratic deficit. What we observe is a proliferation of experiences of both bottom-up and top-down enhanced forms of civic engagement. Our article focuses on “ public engagement .” We analyze the civic collaboration policy promoted by the Municipality of Bologna (Italy) in the frame of “collaborative governance” of the commons, based on civic involvement and governance transparency. Civic collaboration is characterized by a mixed communication ecology. We focus on the inclusiveness of this form of public engagement with local policies and on the role of digital media in supporting citizen’s engagement. Civic collaboration emerges as a new, interesting frontier in top-down enhanced participation in local policies. We are currently witnessing some promising changes in the boundaries of participation, in civic practices and competencies. In conclusion, we argue that the concreteness of the projects of civic collaboration can enhance citizens’ trust in the municipal administration, but we wonder whether it is likely to become a substitute for fuller citizen participation in local governance and whether it could also foster a removal of the controversial dimension of the political. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T06:54:09Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a69fec76167243b9a6e511cbf74532e7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2056-3051 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T06:54:09Z |
| publishDate | 2016-08-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Social Media + Society |
| spelling | doaj.art-a69fec76167243b9a6e511cbf74532e72022-12-22T01:58:28ZengSAGE PublishingSocial Media + Society2056-30512016-08-01210.1177/205630511666218710.1177_2056305116662187Public Engagement, Local Policies, and Citizens’ Participation: An Italian Case Study of Civic CollaborationRoberta Bartoletti0Franca Faccioli1University of Urbino “Carlo Bo,” ItalySapienza University of Rome, ItalySince the 1990s, the theme of participation has come to the fore in international debates regarding at least three critical issues: the relationship between representative democracy and deliberative democracy and the possibility of citizens’ empowerment through their involvement in policy making; the role of communication and of digital media in promoting new forms of participation; the feeling of disaffection toward politics and of democratic deficit. What we observe is a proliferation of experiences of both bottom-up and top-down enhanced forms of civic engagement. Our article focuses on “ public engagement .” We analyze the civic collaboration policy promoted by the Municipality of Bologna (Italy) in the frame of “collaborative governance” of the commons, based on civic involvement and governance transparency. Civic collaboration is characterized by a mixed communication ecology. We focus on the inclusiveness of this form of public engagement with local policies and on the role of digital media in supporting citizen’s engagement. Civic collaboration emerges as a new, interesting frontier in top-down enhanced participation in local policies. We are currently witnessing some promising changes in the boundaries of participation, in civic practices and competencies. In conclusion, we argue that the concreteness of the projects of civic collaboration can enhance citizens’ trust in the municipal administration, but we wonder whether it is likely to become a substitute for fuller citizen participation in local governance and whether it could also foster a removal of the controversial dimension of the political.https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305116662187 |
| spellingShingle | Roberta Bartoletti Franca Faccioli Public Engagement, Local Policies, and Citizens’ Participation: An Italian Case Study of Civic Collaboration Social Media + Society |
| title | Public Engagement, Local Policies, and Citizens’ Participation: An Italian Case Study of Civic Collaboration |
| title_full | Public Engagement, Local Policies, and Citizens’ Participation: An Italian Case Study of Civic Collaboration |
| title_fullStr | Public Engagement, Local Policies, and Citizens’ Participation: An Italian Case Study of Civic Collaboration |
| title_full_unstemmed | Public Engagement, Local Policies, and Citizens’ Participation: An Italian Case Study of Civic Collaboration |
| title_short | Public Engagement, Local Policies, and Citizens’ Participation: An Italian Case Study of Civic Collaboration |
| title_sort | public engagement local policies and citizens participation an italian case study of civic collaboration |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305116662187 |
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