Examples of Involvement in Stakeholder Process

 
Taking Advantage of Technology - E-Health Code of Ethics

A group of industry, academic, advocacy, and other organizations which provide health care information on the Internet sought to develop a code of ethics that would be accepted worldwide. TRG worked with the coalition to implement a 4-month multi-phased participatory process designed to achieve a high level of participation and broad consensus. This process included facilitation of a summit meeting, hosted by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to initiate the design of the code, virtual facilitation of a smaller steering group, electronic updates on the status of the code to summit members, and posting drafts of the code on the web for review and feedback.

In the summit meeting, 60 representatives from key internet health constituencies including consumers and patients, healthcare professionals, ethicists, private companies, academics, special interest societies, manufactures of regulated drugs and medical devices, governmental agencies, and international representatives collaborated in working sessions to produce and agree on a set of international ethical principles to be incorporated in the draft code. TRG then played a key role in working with the Steering Group in establishing norms for working virtually and creating an atmosphere of trust and transparency during the final drafting of the code which was successfully launched (in the U.S. Senate) in the Spring of 2000.

Reform Design and Implementation Unit Agriculture Policy Reform Program

TRG served as the public awareness subcontractor in association with Development Alternatives, Inc. under the Reform Design and Implementation Unit of the MALR/USAID Agriculture Policy Reform Program. In this capacity, TRG provided long term and short term support of a public awareness program designed to 1) help bring about institutional change to support policy benchmarks, and 2) assist with studies and planning that lead to new benchmarks and policy goals. Through the design and implementation of stakeholder workshops, seminars, public meetings, and media campaigns, this public awarness program helped:

  • create a shared vision among stakeholders regarding specific reform measures; build common strategies and plans for implementing these measures; establish agreements on performance standards for the new measures;

  • promote good teamwork and collegiality within and among stakeholder groups;

  • enhance institutional capacity to change response to a changing environment, markets, and technology; and

  • enable people in institutions to make more informed choices based on objective analysis

World Bank: Strategic Action Plan for the Danube River Basin

TRG introduced a collaborative approach to resolving transboundary water and environmental issues during the development of the Danube Environmental Strategic Action Plan. Riparian countries that participated in the process included Austria, Germany, Croatia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine and Moldova. Donors included European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), European Investment Bank (EIB), European Union, UNDP, UNEP, World Bank, GEF, World Conservation Union (IUCN), and the World Wide Fund for Nature.

A TRG specialist worked closely with donor and riparian country representatives period to develop a process that led to the signing of a Ministerial Declaration supporting the document.

The four step collaborative approach included:

  • Design of an overall public consultation strategy to support the preparation of the Strategic Action Plan.The public consultation process was designed to solicit input on priorities and hotspots from various stakeholders in the individual Danube basin countries, including NGOs, journalists, municipal authorities, industry representatives, and various ministry officials.

  • Training of riparian country water resources experts to facilitate two public workshops held in each country to review, discuss and make specific recommendations on draft versions of the Strategic Action Plan.

  • Design and facilitation of two Task Force workshops and numerous Drafting Group sessions to review the recommendations from the country meetings and integrate the results of the public workshops into the Strategic Action Plan.

  • Design and facilitation of a final Task Force meeting to review and approve the final version of the Strategic Action Plan.

The Danube Environmental Strategic Action Plan was developed and approved by Ministers of Water or Environment from each of the riparian countries in less than 1 year.

Private Sector Involvement in Urban Environmental Services in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan

Under contract to the South Asia 1 Energy and Project Finance division of the World Bank, TRG provided facilitation and training services to support private sector involvement in the provision of urban environmental services in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. In collaboration with Bank Project Managers, TRG conceptualized and implemented a series of workshops in the three countries bringing together donor representatives, national and provincial government officials, private investors, NGOs and other stakeholders to clarify the role of government in supporting privatization of services including water supply, wastewater management, solid waste management, ports, roads, and electric power. The workshops have included educational components to build awareness on the part of decision makers and stakeholders of the process of private sector investment, and the new regulatory role of national and regional governments.

The Project:

  • Supported the formulation of policy related to key urban services

  • Promoted the role of the private sector in the provision of these services

  • Facilitated the meaningful participation of NGOs, private investors, and a broad range of stakeholders