FAQ
What is CNYSpeaks?
CNYSpeaks is nonpartisan, nonprofit effort that seeks to spark constructive conversations with Central New Yorkers about critical issues in the region. Using facilitated forums, blogs, journalistic articles and surveys, we work to get beyond platitudes and find consensus. CNYSpeaks then distills those conversations into Citizen Agendas that help guide policy makers, business leaders and others that shape the world around us.
What topics have you tackled so far?
CNYSpeaks is nearing the end of its first topic — improving Downtown Syracuse. The project’s forums, blogs and surveys have generated more than 10,000 comments for bettering Downtown, and have lead to the publication of the Citizens’ Agenda for Downtown Syracuse. CNYSpeaks will continue to push for the implementation of the agenda, and monitor elected officials progress in working toward its goals. But we’re also looking to spark a new conversation on a new topic starting early in 2010.
UPDATE: We’ve hosted several forums since the Downtown Agenda of various topics and have a forum coming up on Feb. 18 on making public meetings more constructive, civil and productive.
What’s the next topic going to be?
CNYSpeaks is still exploring ideas and would love to hear from you. What would you like us to tackle next. E-mail us at cnyspeaks@maxwell.syr.edu.
Who is CNYSpeaks? Who funds it? Who controls it?
You are CNYSpeaks — if you are ready to get involved and participate in the conversation.
CNYSpeaks was started by three individuals — Grant Reeher and Tina Nabatchi, both professors at the Maxwell School, and Greg Munno, The Post-Standard’s former civic engagement editor — with support from both the paper and the Maxwell School.
But the whole idea of the project is to generate dialog among citizens, capture that dialog and reflect it back to policy makers through the agenda. Therefore, Reeher, Nabatchi and Munno all see their roles as facilitators of a project that belongs to the whole community. An example in the downtown conversation is crime. None of the project organizers felt that crime was a serious issue downtown. But we heard otherwise from the participants in the conversation. As a result, dealing with crime became a major part of the Citizens’ Agenda.
The success of the Agenda depends on its authenticity. So we are careful to make sure it reflects the opinions and values of the participants, not the organizers or their affiliated institutions.
Currently, the project is funded through a Chancellor’s Leadership Grant. CNYSpeaks is seeking additional grant money to both expand and prolong the effort.
Isn’t this just “more talk”? How is this going to help get anything done?
Central New Yorkers are frustrated that, despite many studies and articles and pronouncements that have raised our hopes, more progress hasn’t been made in addressing many of the critical issues we face.
However, CNYSpeaks does not believe that means that the citizens of Central New York should stop articulating their vision for the future of the community. On the contrary, we see it as essential that citizens keep coming together and pushing for the improvements they want. CNYSpeaks job is to provide the venue and impetus for that coming together, and then to magnify the results by distilling the conversation into meaningful documents that can be used by policy makers to make better decisions.
It is not a process that will fix anything on its own. But it is a tool that citizens and elected officials can utilize to make sure that when problems are tackled, they are tackled in a way that truly improves our community.
How can I participate?
Attend a CNYSpeaks event. Join the discussion on our Blog. Email us with any questions, concerns or ideas. Join us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.
