Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

The involvement and engagement of citizens are increasingly becoming a mantra in climate change governance including climate mitigation initiatives. However, the literature shows the concept of public engagement in climate change initiatives is often used loosely with strong differences in terms of what it means and how it should be performed. This study explores how civil servants and a representative from non-governmental organizations make sense of “public engagement” in the case of Climate Week in Uppsala 2019. With the help of frame analysis, the study uncovers embedded ideas about practitioner’s understanding of the rationales and the approach for/to public engagement and their roles in these processes, in which practitioners draw on when facilitating or participating. The analysis brought forward five identity and process frames practitioners draw on, whereas all actors draw on more than one frame in a public engagement process. The identified frames are ‘influencing the public frame’, ‘empowering the public frame’ ‘involving the public frame’ and ‘informing the public frame’. The results depict different public engagement frames and the discussion illustrates that these frames are based on different underlying ideas of how and why the organiser and participating partners ought to address public engagement in climate mitigation initiatives. Differing understandings have implications for the process of public engagement in climate mitigation initiatives that take place, and the practitioner's and citizens' roles in these processes. Depending on the understanding, actors will act in different ways in the public engagement process and they will consider different approaches and rationales for public engagement in climate mitigation efforts. Also, actors who participate in public engagement processes can have different frames of the same process, and therefore might act differently or misunderstand each other when talking about public engagement. Overall, the conducted frame analysis with practitioners and participating partners reveals insights into the practice of public engagement in climate mitigation initiatives.