Challenges for Civic Participation and Local Democratic Processes in Urban Development German Experiences

Abstract

The focus of this article is about challenges and experiences with dialogue oriented civic participation in urban development processes in Germany. The article builds on the implementation and evaluation of several participatory processes, which were realised in eleven German cities since 2012. In Germany, civic participation has become an integral part of planning practice in most communal authorities in the past decades and especially in the last fifteen years. Many methods for participatory planning processes have been developed and municipal authorities set up their own guidelines for good participation. Unfortunately, within the context of post-democratic trends, public participation in local politics has received the same criticism from political scientists, as has the representative democracy. In many cases, instead of being an effective instrument for feedback between state and citizens, it reproduces social injustice. The article analyses the challenges for civic participation regarding its democratic legitimization and implementation practice within urban planning processes between top-down oriented governmental actions and local bottom-up contexts. It ends with a proposal of how civic participation could be improved and societal inclusion strengthened in local democratic processes, and to increase the effectivity and acceptance of public planning.