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UNCG Member Offerings

UNCG members offer a wide variety of services within their communities, from courses and trainings to research and publications and to projects with community partners.  Some of these are focused on their immediate communities (their university, their city, or their state) while others are offered or available nationally or even internationally.  Check out our Member Directory to find members by state or by their interest areas.

Highlights

Events

Virginia Governor's Summit on Equitable Collaboration - a virtual summit in February 2021 hosted by the Institute for Engagement and Negotiation (University of Virginia)

In partnership with Governor Ralph Northam and his administration, the UVA’s Institute for Engagement & Negotiation (IEN) brought together a broad cross-section of people working in health, education, natural resources, and community development to discuss the growth and trajectory of collaboration in Virginia, and its future needs to ensure equity. The convening of this Summit aimed to discuss key issues faced in the Commonwealth of Virginia such as: increasing diversity in the field of natural resources conflict resolution and collaboration; identifying successes in Virginia’s natural resources collaborations; and identifying potential paths forward for advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in natural resources, as well as for specifically advancing environmental justice in agriculture and forestry. These overarching goals sought to provide a platform for interstate partners to gain awareness, learn, and discuss strategies to take a systems approach to addressing disparities in natural resources.  View recordings from the Summit and read a summary report

Publications

Collaborative Governance Regimes by Kirk Emerson (University of Arizona) and Tina Nabatchi (Syracuse University)

This book by two UNCG members breaks new conceptual and practical ground by presenting an integrative framework for working across boundaries to solve shared problems, a typology for understanding variations among collaborative governance regimes, and an approach for assessing both process and productivity performance. This book draws on diverse literatures and uses rich case illustrations to inform scholars and practitioners about collaborative governance regimes and to provide guidance for designing, managing, and studying such endeavors in the future. Collaborative Governance Regimes will be of special interest to scholars and researchers in public administration, public policy, and political science who want a framework for theory building, yet the book is also accessible enough for students and practitioners.

Order a copy 

How Collaborative Governance Practitioners Can Assess the Effectiveness of Collaborative Environmental Governance, While Also Evaluating Their Own Services from UNCG member William D. Ruckelshaus Center

Trevor Robinson, Michael Kern, Rebecca Sero & Craig W. Thomas (2019) How Collaborative Governance Practitioners Can Assess the Effectiveness of Collaborative Environmental Governance, While Also Evaluating Their Own Services, Society & Natural Resources, DOI: 10.1080/08941920.2019.1668990

Abstract

Collaborative governance applied to environmental issues is becoming more common, and evaluation of such efforts can provide useful information for multiple audiences. However, due to a variety of challenges, collaborative governance practitioners rarely evaluate the outcomes of collaboration and their contributions to these efforts. With these challenges in mind, the William D. Ruckelshaus Center designed an evaluation framework that can meet multiple parties’ objectives, be integrated into practitioners’ existing services, and balance flexibility and practicality with rigor and replicability. The Center conducted a pilot of this framework on a collaborative watershed management effort in southeastern Washington State, where the Center had previously assisted with organizational development. The resulting evaluation highlights a variety of social, knowledge-based, and economic outcomes for the collaborative, as well as lessons for practitioners and evaluators of collaborative governance. We suggest that this methodology can be useful for practitioners interested in evaluating similar collaborative efforts.

Education / Training

Portland State University's Online Collaborative Governance Certificate equips students to collaborate across silos and sectors to improve your organization, your community, and the world. Our online format allows you to complete the certificate in just over a year, even while you work full-time. Non-certificate students may also opt to take one or more courses individually. Our certificate is offered jointly by several nationally-recognized PSU institutions, including the National Policy Consensus Center, which has conducted hundreds of collaborative governance projects. Build multi-organization and cross-sector partnerships to shape public policy and solve problems.  

You’ll learn to:

  • Design and manage collaborative processes that maximize participation and seek agreement
  • Conduct negotiations and manage conflict in two-party, and multi-party settings
  • Identify power differences and address issues of equity
  • Employ computer and web-based decision and communications tools
  • Integrate relevant technical information into collaborative processes
  • Secure broad-based financial and in-kind resources
  • Participate in policy-making that addresses community needs, industry needs, economic health, the environment, and more. 

You’ll get:

  • Practical, high-level training from collaborative governance experts
  • Online lectures, discussions, and coordinated group exercises using video conferencing, live chat, and other technologies that foster interaction 
  • Opportunities to work on real-world collaborative governance projects or a problem in your own workplace or community
  • Access to a network of collaborative governance practitioners

For program information, contact Kristen Wright

Pepperdine University's Professional Certificate in Advanced Public Engagement for Local Government prepares mid-career professionals to lead a publicly-engaged organization by gaining a deep understanding of the context, purpose, and best practices for engaging residents in the decisions that affect their lives and communities.  The Certificate program benefits all local government practitioners including: professionals from cities, counties, and special districts, private sector employees who serve local governments, and graduate students focused on local government.  Sessions over the course of the long weekend program include: 

  • Why Public Engagement? Why Now?
  • Getting Engagement Right from the Start
  • Leading Edge Techniques
  • Engaging Marginalized Communities
  • The Role of Technology in Public Engagement
  • Facilitating Difficult Conversations
  • Leading Public Engagement from Where You Are