Civility is Only First Step in Problem Solving

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Jan 31, 2011, 04:00 ET

National League of Cities Provides Public Engagement Guide to City Leaders

WASHINGTON, Jan. 31, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The national discussion on civility, borne out of the terrible events in Tucson, demonstrates that many believe the current overheated rhetoric is not working as a means to solve the nation's problems. Policy debates are increasingly fraught with name calling, electioneering, posturing and worse.

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In recognition of this, the National League of Cities (NLC) has created an action guide, Beyond Civility: From Public Engagement to Problem Solving, to assist local elected officials in creating a framework for civility and democratic governance that encourages governing a community in a participatory, deliberative, inclusive and collaborative way.

For a copy of the guide, go to:http://nlc.staging.10floor.com/ASSETS/B5FAD9F7F4B84A2E93D8DB388FA8C700/RI_CivilityGuide2010_FINAL.pdf

The guide outlines seven principles cities can take to build a culture of inclusion and openness:

Act as models of civility
Sharpen governing skills
Create opportunities for informed engagement
Support a culture of community involvement
Make the most of technology
Include everybody
Make it last

In the forward to the report, Donald J. Borut, executive director of NLC said, "At all levels of government, we need dialogue that is worthy of our great democracy. The public square should be a place where people can disagree. But it should also be a place where people unite to find common ground in deriving solutions to the nation's concerns.

"But this does not mean that we must tolerate all forms of discussion. We should not tolerate language and actions that shut others out of the system or prevent people from taking part in the democratic process. We must not allow ideas that will close off our community and refuse to respect the rights, thoughts and actions of others. This should be the goal of a civil society that acts civilly.

"We hear it time and again that everyone wants a constructive dialogue that promotes a sense of shared responsibility and mutual accountability. This means going beyond just re-examining the nation's rhetoric, but also looking towards processes and activities that can be utilized to build stronger, healthier communities and a better nation."

For more resources on democratic governance, go to: http://www.nlc.org/topics/index.aspx?SectionID=governance

The National League of Cities is the nation's oldest and largest organization devoted to strengthening and promoting cities as centers of opportunity, leadership and governance. NLC is a resource and advocate for 19,000 cities, towns and villages, representing more than 218 million Americans.

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SOURCE National League of Cities