Democratic Dialogue – a Handbook for Practitioners
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Democratic DialogueDemocratic Practitioners – A Handbook for This Handbook, sponsored jointly by International IDEA, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), offers a comprehensive overview of the use of dialogue processes to address societal challenges in an inclusive, democratic way that engages a broad range of actors in bringing about positive change. It is addressed to people actively or potentially engaged in doing dialogue work—organizing, sponsoring, promoting, or facilitating dialogue processes within their institutions and societies. Most importantly, it is thoroughly grounded in the experience of dialogue practitioners from around the world. Democratic The Handbook provides a conceptual framework that speaks to critical questions: ‘Why dialogue?’, ‘What is dialogue?’ and ‘How does dialogue contribute to positive change?’. It offers a detailed guide to putting these concepts into practice, offering Dialogue – practical guidance and concrete examples from the field for each step: exploring whether a dialogue process is appropriate in the context; designing and then implementing a dialogue process; and conducting a meaningful process of monitoring and evaluation A Handbook throughout. A third major part of the book anchors all of this information in the reality of three fully developed case studies showing different approaches in different regions— for Practitioners Latin America, Africa and Asia. In two appendices, the Handbook also provides a comparative overview of more than 30 cases and a guide to the rich array of dialogue processes and process tools that practitioners can consider for use, or just for inspiration. ‘The authors of this Handbook on Democratic Dialogue have undertaken the difficult but necessary task of gathering the vast comparative knowledge accumulated in the field of dialogue and translating it into clear concepts and practical options for dialogue facilitators. Sponsored by and drawing upon the experience of three international organizations (IDEA, UNDP and the OAS) and one development cooperation agency (the Canadian CIDA), the Handbook offers helpful insights into contemporary conceptual approaches to dialogue and provides practitioners with concrete sets of options on how to design, start, convene, conduct, monitor and evaluate a dialogue process. The multiple options offered stem from practice, and the case studies presented . illustrate how these options may be applied in real life.’ —from the Foreword by Lakhdar Brahimi, former Adviser to the United Nations Secretary-General CIDA INTERNATIONAL IDEA 200 Promenade du Portage Gatineau Strömsborg Quebec K1A 0G4 S-103 34 Stockholm Canada Sweden Website: http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca Website: http://www.idea.int ISBN: 978-91-85391-94-3 ISBN 978-91-85391-94-3 OAS UNDP 17th St. & Constitution Ave., N.W. One United Nations Plaza Washington, DC 20006 New York, NY 10017 USA USA Website: http://www.oas.org Website: http://www.undp.org 9 7 8 9 1 8 5 3 9 1 9 4 3 Democratic Dialogue – A Handbook for Practitioners Democratic Dialogue – A Handbook for Practitioners ii CIDA, IDEA, OAS, UNDP Democratic Dialogue – A Handbook for Practitioners Bettye Pruitt and Philip Thomas Democratic Dialogue – A Handbook for Practitioners iii Democratic Dialogue – A Handbook for Practitioners The content of this Handbook does not necessarily reflect the views of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the Government of Canada, International IDEA, the Organization of American States (OAS), the General Secretariat of the OAS (GS/OAS), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), their respective executive boards, governing bodies, and/or member states. The Handbook is an independent publication commissioned by CIDA, International IDEA, the GS/OAS and UNDP. It is the fruit of a collaborative effort by these institutions and the work of eminent experts in the field of democratic dialogue. © General Secretariat of the Organization of American States 2007 © International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance 2007 © United Nations Development Programme 2007 Applications for permission to reproduce or translate all or any part of this publication should be made to: GS/OAS 17th St. & Constitutional Ave., N. W. Washington, D.C. 20006 USA International IDEA Strömsborg SE - 103 34 Stockholm Sweden UNDP One United Nations Plaza New York, NY 10017 USA Graphic design by: Trydells Form Photo upper right: © Interpeace/Ryan Anson Photo on the left: © Arabella Cecil/Panos Pictures Printed by: Trydells Tryckeri AB, Sweden ISBN: 978-91-85391-94-3 Contents Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................................................. xii Foreword ................................................................................................................................................................ xiii Preface ................................................................................................................................................................... xvi Acronyms and Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................ xvii Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................... 1 Purpose of the Handbook ................................................................................................................................ 1 Focus on Practitioners .............................................................................................................................. 1 How to Use the Handbook ............................................................................................................................... 2 Part 1: The Conceptual Framework ........................................................................................................ 6 Chapter 1.1: Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 7 Chapter 1.2: The Need for Dialogue ................................................................................................................... 10 The Need for a Culture of Democracy ........................................................................................................ 10 The Need for Effective Governance ............................................................................................................ 14 Participatory Processes That Can Produce Results.......................................................................... 15 Chapter 1.3: Defining Dialogue ........................................................................................................................... 19 Definitions ........................................................................................................................................................ 19 Defining Dialogue as a Distinctive Kind of Process........................................................................... 20 Defining Dialogue in a Global Context.................................................................................................. 24 Governing Principles: The Defining Characteristics of Dialogue Processes ....................................... 26 The Dialogic Approach .................................................................................................................................. 32 The Dialogic Approach as a Code of Conduct .................................................................................... 33 Taking the Dialogic Approach beyond Dialogue Processes ............................................................ 33 Chapter 1.4: How Dialogue Contributes to Change ......................................................................................... 35 Levels of Change ............................................................................................................................................. 35 How Does It Work? ......................................................................................................................................... 39 The Dialogic Moment .............................................................................................................................. 40 From Personal Change to Societal Change ................................................................................................ 41 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................................... 43 Part 2: Putting Concepts into Practice ............................................................................................... 46 Chapter 2.1: Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 47 Dialogue Practitioners and the Roles They Play ....................................................................................... 47 The Dialogic Approach .................................................................................................................................. 49 How to Use This Section ..............................................................................................................................