Founded in 2020 by Camille Esquivel, a second generation Filipinx-Canadian and first generation architect-planner, SQVL is a NY-based think tank with a mission of making architecture, research, and the planning process accessible to communities who need them the most through technical and engagement services.
designing inclusive + equitable digital spaces of engagement
2020 - ongoing
advanced independent research study
advisor: malo hutson
With the shift and reliance on virtual tools due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen all members of our academic community, various organizations, and the larger public adapt to this new remote-only environment. Questions that arise include, but are not limited to:
How can we create collaborative and inclusive virtual spaces for community engagement?
How can we ensure that these spaces are safe and equitable for all participants (thinking about intersectionality)?
How do we manage people’s privacy and security?
The goals of this independent study is to further understand the landscape of our current community engagement practices as an urban planning profession and understand the limitations and barriers these are currently presenting (through expert interviews). This inquiry will explore the effectiveness of existing tools, supported by an academic literature review.
The final deliverable is designed entirely with/in Google Slides to intentionally remove the traditional barriers to design (access to software) and findings from conducted interviews are still being summarized.
Interviews conducted thus far:
Andrea Chiney, Arianna Deane, Ashely Kuo (A+A+A)
Cheryl Lim (Karp Strategies)
Eddy Almonte (NYC HPD’s Office of Neighborhood Strategies)
Stephanie Yee-Kay Chan (Manhattan Borough President's Office)
Vanessa Hill (Art Against Displacement)
Sample sllides from final report
comprehensive reading list
Last updated: January 10, 2021
Afzalan, N., Sanchez, T. W., & Evans-Cowley, J. (2017). Creating smarter cities: Considerations for selecting online participatory tools. Cities, 67, 21–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2017.04.002
Alathur, S., Vigneswara Ilavarasan, P., & Gupta, M. P. (2016). Determinants of e-participation in the citizens and the government initiatives: Insights from India. Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, 55, 25–35. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seps.2016.04.005
Augsberger, A., Collins, M. E., Gecker, W., Lusk, K., & Zhao, Q. J. (2017). “She treated us like we bring valid ideas to the table:” Youth experiences of a youth-led participatory budgeting process. Children and Youth Services Review, 76, 243–249. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2017.02.025
Baiocchi, G., & Fernandez, E.G. (2017). Popular Democracy: The paradox of participation. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press
Beard, Victoria A. 2003. “Learning Radical Planning: The Power of Collective Action.” Planning Theory, Vol 2, Issue 1, pp. 13-35.
Castelnovo, Walter. (2013). “A Stakeholder Based Approach to Public Value.” In ECEG2013-13th European Conference on eGovernment: ECEG 2013, p.94. Academic Conference Limited.
Chun, Soon Ae et al. (2010). “Government 2.0: Making connections between citizens, data and government.” Information Polity 15: 1–9
Clark, S. S. (2015). Broadening Public Participation Using Online Engagement Tools: Choosing and Using Online Tools to Expand Public Participation in Local Decision-Making (p. 11). Institute for Local Government. https://www.ca-ilg.org/sites/main/files/file-attachments/broadening_participation_via_online_tools_final_draft_1.pdf
Digital democracy: Is the future of civic engagement online? ((Re-)Thinking Democracy, p. 9). (2020). [Briefing]. European Parliament. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2020/646161/EPRS_BRI(2020)646161_EN.pdf
Dubow, T., Devaux, A., Stolk, C. V., & Manville, C. (2017). Civic engagement: How can digital technologies underpin citizen-powered democracy? (p. 25). RAND Corporation and Corsham Institute. https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/conf_proceedings/CF300/CF373/RAND_CF373.pdf
Forester, J. (2006). Challenges of Deliberation and Participation. Les Ateliers de l’éthique, 1(2), 19–25. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=phl&AN=PHL2121160&site=ehost-live
From Passive to Proactive: Best Practices for Citizen Engagement (p. 17). (2019). OpenGov. http://go.opengov.com/rs/884-HTB-905/images/Best%20Practices%20for%20Citizen%20Engagement%20eBook.pdf
Frug, G. E. (2001). City making: Building communities without building walls. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Fung, A. and Wright, O. (2003). Deepening Democracy: Institutional Innovations in Empowered Participatory Governance
Goodin, R. E. (2017). The epistemic benefits of deliberative democracy. Policy Sciences, 50(3), 351–366. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11077-017-9286-0
Gordon, E. (2016). Accelerating Public Engagement: A Roadmap for Local Government (p. 74). City Accelerator, Living Cities.
Hasler, S. (2017). Digital Technologies for Inclusive Urban Planning. 3, 4. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318583532_Digital_Technologies_for_Inclusive_Urban_Planning
Hasler, S., Chenal, J., & Soutter, M. (2017). Digital Tools as a Means to Foster Inclusive, Data-informed Urban Planning. Civil Engineering and Architecture, 5(6), 230–239. https://doi.org/10.13189/cea.2017.050605
Healy, P. (2011). Rethinking deliberative democracy: From deliberative discourse to transformative dialogue. Philosophy & Social Criticism, 37(3), 295–311. https://doi.org/10.1177/0191453710389439
Karlinsey, R. (2020, March 13). Public Meetings in the Time of Covid-19. ICMA. https://icma.org/blog-posts/public-meetings-time-covid-19
Le Blanc, D. (2020). E-participation: A Quick Overview of Recent Qualitative Trends (UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) Working Papers No. 163; UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) Working Papers, Vol. 163). https://doi.org/10.18356/0f898163-en
Lyons, S. H. (2017). Digital Engagement, Social Media & Public Participation (p. 12). International Association for Public Participation Canada. https://www.iap2canada.ca/resources/Documents/Newsletter/2017_social_media_white_paper.pdf
Mandarano, L., Meenar, M., & Steins, C. (2010). Building Social Capital in the Digital Age of Civic Engagement. Journal of Planning Literature, 25(2), 123–135. https://doi.org/10.1177/0885412210394102
Manoharan, A. P., & Ingrams, A. (2018). Conceptualizing E-Government from Local Government Perspectives. State and Local Government Review, 50(1), 56–66. https://doi.org/10.1177/0160323X18763964
Meetings and Technology: Finding the Right Balance (Ethics/Public Engagement). (2013). Institute for Local Government. https://www.ca-ilg.org/sites/main/files/file-attachments/technology_and_public_meetings.pdf?1442365820
National Informatics Center, Government of India and UNESCO. (2005). E-Government Toolkit for Developing Countries. New Delhi: UNESCO 2005. Accessed on February, 2018.
Nelimarkka, M., Nonnecke, B., Krishnan, S., Aitamurto, T., Crittenden, C., Garland, C., Gregory, C., Newsom, G., Patel, J., Scott, J., & Goldberg, K. (2014). Comparing Three Online Civic Engagement Platforms using the “Spectrum of Public Participation” Framework. Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS): Connected Communities, 23. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0bz755bj
Panopoulou, E., Tambouris, E., & Tarabanis, K. (2014). Success factors in designing eParticipation initiatives. Information and Organization, 24(4), 195–213. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infoandorg.2014.08.001
Pârvu, C.-A. (2015). Radical Political Theory and Deliberative Democracy. Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyai, Europaea, 60(2), 199–224.
Smith, A. (2013). Civic Engagement in the Digital Age (p. 59). Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2013/04/PIP_CivicEngagementintheDigitalAge.pdf
Stephens, J. B. (2017). Civic Technology: Open Data and Citizen Volunteers as a Resource for North Carolina Local Governments (p. 49). UNC School of Government. https://www.sog.unc.edu/publications/reports/civic-technology-open-data-and-citizen-volunteers-resource-north-carolina-local-governments
Susha, I., & Grönlund, Å. (2012). eParticipation research: Systematizing the field. Government Information Quarterly, 29(3), 373–382. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2011.11.005
Vogels, E., Perrin, A., Rainie, L., & Anderson, M. (2020). 53% of Americans Say the Internet Has Been Essential During the COVID-19 Outbreak (p. 24). Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2020/04/30/53-of-americans-say-the-internet-has-been-essential-during-the-covid-19-outbreak/
Walker, R. (2016). CoUrbanize’s Online Community Planning Forum (City Tech). Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. https://www.lincolninst.edu/publications/articles/city-tech