Public Engagement 101: The Why Before the How

For many in the design and planning professions, public engagement can feel daunting, similar to the nerves some experience before public speaking. And like public speaking, it’s often misunderstood or minimized. Too often, engagement is treated as a procedural step — something to complete for compliance or optics. But we know better. When we reduce public engagement to a checkbox, we miss an essential opportunity to create more meaningful, equitable outcomes. Ultimately, our projects are stronger — more informed, more inclusive, more sustainable — when we bring more voices to the table.

Authentic engagement is not a one-time event or an isolated phase in the design process. It’s a sustained practice that builds understanding, strengthens trust and encourages collaboration. When done well, public engagement allows organizations to gain a more complete picture of a community's values, needs and aspirations. In these cases, it becomes about more than input, but rather about relationship-building, creating conditions for mutual respect and shared ownership, where community members feel seen, heard and valued.

Inclusive engagement leads to decisions that reflect the realities of the people most affected by them. It also increases project legitimacy and reduces future opposition. Simply put, when communities are invited into the process, they’re more likely to support its outcomes — because they helped shape them.

Listening to Understand

As someone who’s rarely accused of being shy, I’ve had to work intentionally at becoming a better listener. Not the kind of listening where you’re just waiting for your turn to talk, or listening while formulating your own response, but the kind where you’re focused on really understanding.

And let’s be honest — that kind of listening takes work, beginning with removing yourself from the center of the narrative. Public engagement isn’t about asserting your perspective. It’s about opening space for others to share theirs. And we approach these conversations as lifelong learners, every interaction is a chance to grow, if we’re willing to really listen.

A 2015 study from the Academy of Management Learning & Education revealed a telling imbalance: while 78% of undergraduate business programs list “presenting” as a learning goal, only 11% mention “listening.” This gap is revealing, and it reflects what we often see in professional culture: an overemphasis on speaking, persuading and leading, without a matching emphasis on understanding and receiving.

Effective listening in public engagement serves two purposes:

1: To grasp the substance and emotion behind what’s being said.

2: To convey authentic care, presence and responsiveness.

The second goal is essential to building trust, because when people don’t feel heard, they disengage. By contrast, when we create a culture where listening is valued, we invite participation and co-creation. We make space for diverse perspectives to inform better decisions.

In strengths-based cultures, like the one we have at RDG, we often highlight traits like strategic thinking, communication and influence. But we should equally recognize empathy, adaptability and harmony as critical assets in engagement work. These relational skills are what help us build trust, form lasting partnerships and create environments where people feel empowered to contribute.

Developing an Engagement & Communication Strategy

Even when we have a general framework for engagement, every project presents a unique context and deserves a tailored strategy. That customization starts not with tools, but with questions.

When working with clients, we begin by asking:

What are you hoping to learn?

How will that information be used?

These questions are essential to transparency. People are busy, and if you’re asking people to take time out of their day — to complete a survey, attend a meeting, participate in an activity or even stop and chat — they deserve to understand why. They deserve to know how their input will influence the process and ultimately improve their community.

Without that clarity, engagement efforts can feel performative or disingenuous. But when people understand the purpose of their participation, they’re more likely to contribute openly, and more likely to continue participating throughout the project’s lifecycle.

The tools we use to hear from community members are fast and ever evolving (that’s another article entirely). The environment that we create to have important conversations and gather community feedback is just as important as the tools we use to do it.

People want to feel heard and welcomed. They want communication that’s accessible and clear. They appreciate thoughtful details: snacks, child-friendly spaces, inclusive language. They even want to have fun. Most importantly, they want to contribute to bettering their community. It’s up to us as professionals to develop a strategy that meets people where they are and helps them not only participate in a process but feel empowered to help implement strategies that come out of the project.

Building Engagement Skills Through Practice

Meaningful public engagement doesn’t require perfection, it requires presence, patience and consistent practice. And it’s not reserved for large meetings or high-stakes projects; it begins with everyday interactions. Engagement is a mindset, not just a method. And the good news? Opportunities to build and refine these skills are all around us.

Start by considering your own definition of community. Is it defined by geography, identity, purpose or all of the above? Where do you already belong, and where might you grow? Whether it’s your neighborhood, your workplace or a shared cause you care about, every space you inhabit is an opportunity to listen better, connect deeper and contribute more meaningfully.

You can build engagement skills in ways that are both formal and informal: serve on local boards, commissions or community committees to understand public processes from the inside; volunteer with organizations aligned with your values to experience engagement as a community member; offer to lead internal meetings, facilitate conversations or share insights from your field to strengthen your team's collective voice; attend conferences, workshops or career fairs not just to learn, but to listen; seek leadership development opportunities that stretch your comfort zone and expand your perspective; and create space for your team to reflect on their engagement strengths and how they can complement each other in practice.

These aren’t only resume-builders; they’re perspective-shapers. They help us understand not just how we engage, but why. They reveal our biases, sharpen our empathy and reinforce our responsibility to make participation accessible, respectful and worthwhile for everyone.

At its core, public engagement is the ultimate group project. It calls on us to know ourselves and understand others to collaborate in ways that are courageous and compassionate. It asks us to listen when it would be easier to lead, to remain curious when the path is unclear and to stay committed even when conversations are hard. And while the work isn’t always easy, it’s the kind that makes a lasting difference.

Reframing Engagement as Shared Ownership

When we engage with intention — both as professionals, and as human beings — we create momentum. And we begin to reimagine what’s possible when communities are empowered to help shape their own future. As planners, designers and community stewards, we hold both the privilege and the responsibility of shaping environments that impact people’s daily lives. That responsibility demands that we listen fully, engage authentically and remain open to ideas beyond our own. It requires us to ask better questions and create space for voices that have historically been excluded from decision-making. When we do this well, engagement not only informs the work, it transforms it.

So, ask yourself: How am I showing up in the communities I serve? Am I creating opportunities for honest dialogue, shared vision and mutual respect? Am I prepared to listen without defensiveness and to invite collaboration at every step of the way?

The next time you’re developing a project or attending a community meeting, challenge yourself to lead with empathy and curiosity. Start by listening to understand, not just to respond. Because when we reframe engagement not as a hurdle, but as a shared commitment, we build more than just plans or places. We build trust. We build belonging. And ultimately, we build better outcomes — together.