Charrette As A Framework Of Equitable Community Engagement with Holly Madill

In this episode, Helen Solomon and Raven Nee interview  the director of the National Charrette Institute, Holly Madill, on the charrette process and how it is used for community engagement. They discuss designing and defining equitable community engagement, how to measure success, how to prevent underrepresented communities from being left out of planning processes, and explore in depth how a charrette framework helps create an equitable and inclusive outcome. Tune in to hear more about what goes into a charette and how it can be used in park planning!

Highlights from the Conversation:

• Urban planning and park equity
• Charrette functions as a tool as well as a framework
• Co-embed community into planning process
• Stakeholders as designers
• White supremacy driven framework of urgency and perfectionism
• Equity versus equality
• Barriers to participation - changes due to Covid-19
• Metrics: do demographics align with those who show up to engagements?
• Community decides whether or not an outcome is equitable

Guest Mini Bio:

• Holly Madill is the director of the National Charrette Institute at Michigan State University
  
  • She trains working professionals on charrette methodology as well as in engagement and facilitation
  • She has more than 20 years of experience with participatory planning and facilitation
    Reach out to her on Linkedin

Learn More!

• What is a charrette? From the World Bank
• Check out this memo from the American Planning Association on Crafting Charrettes That Transform Communities
• Community Engagement Best Practices article from the National Recreation and Parks Association which helped inspire this episode

Credits:

Special thanks to Holly Madill. Research, concept, and voices: Raven Nee and Helen Solomon. Intro and Outro voice: Alex Davis. Produced by: Raven Nee.