Cooperative Planning
Cooperative Planning is a voluntary, coordinated strategic planning effort, often initiated by a municipality, official agency or governmental office to solve a specific issue, opportunity or problem by involving all the crucial stakeholders. It offers a way to involve citizens in local decision-making, manage public disputes and reconcile different local interests. Cooperative Planning is both participatory and outcome-oriented. It seeks to ensure that agreements are implemented, results are monitored and outcomes are achieved.
Partners uses Cooperative Planning to design creative, effective and sustainable solutions to concrete issues over which no single agency or organization has complete jurisdiction to impose a solution. Examples include municipal services such as electricity and trash collection, school improvements, drafting of new national policies on mediation or civil society, and others. Partners has implemented Cooperative Planning processes in more than 100 communities worldwide, including Argentina, Bulgaria, Georgia, Hungary, Poland, and the United States.
Cooperative Planning has benefits that extend beyond the design and implementation of a plan to address the community issues for which the process is convened. Cooperative Planning models democratic practice, strengthens relationships, develops trust, and builds social capital. Through Cooperative Planning, governance is strengthened and democracy is lived; it is energized through acts of citizen participation and engagement in community affairs.
How We Work
