Engage Delaney and GHT Global delivered the first pilot of the Public Safety in Community Engagement course in late February. With 20 participants working in all levels of government and the not-for-profit sector, we had a wide range of organizational contexts in which we could learn together and explore more deeply how we plan for physically safe engagement spaces.
Participants were generous with their engagement in the course and their feedback. For most participants there was an acknowledgement that often safety and security in public engagement are overlooked or considered too late in the planning process. There was a lot of appreciation for a course that brings together two different disciplines for one common goal. With Jessica as an expert in engagement and Tim as an expert in safety and security, we explored the balancing act between creating engaging spaces that are also safe.
Here’s what participants shared that they particularly liked:
- Having experts in different domains (engagement and security) coming together with their shared experiences. Jessica and Tim each bring their own practical tips and tricks, and engaging stories highlighting their personal experiences, but they come together to bring to life a theoretical framework taught in the course.
- An integrated approach for planning the engagement and safety.
- Applying a risk assessment framework to help assess how to best plan for safer engagement spaces.
- Facilitated whole group conversations to learn from other participants.
- Tangible and practical tools for how to increase safety and security in public engagement.
Participants provided constructive feedback for improvement which included clarifying language, better integration of slides, workbook and speaking notes and relooking at the amount of time in whole group versus small groups.
Thank you to all those who participated in the pilot. We are now updating the course so that it will reflect feedback we received from engagement professionals. If you are interested in learning more about the public course being offered on June 2-3, please visit: Public Safety in Community Engagement or email Brenda, our training manager, at brenda@engagedelaney.com.