Dear Students: Citizen Engagement Project Opportunity

As some of you may have heard on the local news recently, the Harris Centre has just launched an 18-month citizen engagement project to discuss climate change and its impact on the economy and society in Newfoundland and Labrador. Over the next year and a half, the Harris Centre will be presenting panel discussions, presentations, articles, reports and infographics (all online) related to the topic. In addition to sharing information though, we’re hoping to recruit 45 average Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to participate in a Citizen Forum (like a citizen assembly). The job of the Citizen Forum is to watch (online) (and they can also read the information provided as well, for background), and then ask questions, share their key take-aways, and discuss (online) with the other Citizen Forum members and the various experts and panelists ideas and solutions to address climate change as well as the economic and social sustainability of the province going forward. 

 We have 8 or 9 spots (of the 45) specifically for young people (age 16-18) (this group will be the representatives for youth under 16 in the province as well) and we’d love to get the word out to them about the opportunity. The application is simple and the selection is based on demographics and regional breakdown of the province, and even if they’re not selected there will be lots of ways for the general public to get involved, and we’ll have a “backup list” of interested people in cause any of the Citizen Forum members can’t complete the process. 

 In the meantime, here’s a link to the website and a link directly to the application for the Citizen Forum. And if you’d like an example of some of the creative ways we make complex issues accessible and interesting to the general public, here’s a link the Vital Signs publications we produce annually (and the Vital Signs website), we’ll be using this method for lots of material related to this project as well – a mix of photos, stories, infographics and expert commentary. ________________________________________________ 

 CATHY NEWHOOK | manager, engagement and communications Harris Centre | 2nd Floor Emera Innovation Exchange Signal Hill Campus | Memorial University of Newfoundland 709.864.7918 | cathyn@mun.ca | www.mun.ca/harriscentre