Mechanisms for Public Participation at a Normative Planning Level in Canada

The experience with public participation in Canada has been predominantly at an operational planning level. Little attention has been given to the issue of public involvement at a normative planning level, and there is not a clear nor concise strategy for \u27normative participation\u27. Based on available literature, personal interviews and the author\u27s own experience, the intent of this paper is to review the existing alternative mechanisms for public participation at a normative planning level in Canada. It is demonstrated that advisory bodies, Green Papers and legislative committees are better suited to effective public participation at a normative planning level than are the more commonly employed mechanisms of lobbying and public inquiries