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Consequential Participation: the freedom and opportunity for participation to have tangible, meaningful influence
The opportunity to ‘have a say’ is not sufficient: consequential participation is the freedom and opportunity to influence the contexts, systems and decisions that affect people’s lives. Real power to effect change is required (Holland 2017: 397; Nussbaum 2000: 80). This encompasses being able to perceive tangible impacts, to remain informed, and to have access to accountability and feedback mechanisms. Consequential participation is not restricted to policy impacts; it is also about change within communities and everyday practices (Balestra et al 2018: 1861). Consequentiality sustains participation in the long term: when people see that their participation makes a difference, this builds a stronger sense of agency and motivation for further participation. Crucially, consequential participation not only depends on the opportunities afforded through and within a participatory process. It also depends on outcomes, which stem from complex and ongoing networks of actors and institutions responsible for decision-making and implementation outside of the process. This makes consequential participation one of the most essential but fragile and elusive democratic capabilities.
Downstream Enablers of Consequential Participation in INSPIRE
Creating spaces for direct connection between marginalised groups and officials helps to close the distance between citizens and institutions and build direct relationships of accountability.
Accountability and feedback mechanisms built into the process can help ensure that
participants are informed about the outcomes of participation and can respond accordingly. A lack of accountability and of being kept informed is pervasive across the field of participation and points to a lack of reciprocity between authorities and citizens.
Transparency upfront, throughout and after participatory processes serves to provide clarity and negotiate expectations on what the process is realistically able to achieve, as well as the reasons for these limits. It creates opportunities to see tangible outcomes and hold authorities to account.
