Public Participation

The Department of Sustainable Development has taken a lead role in supporting good governance principles through international cooperation instruments, such as the Rio Declaration (including Principle 10), the Inter-American Democratic Charter (the Charter), and the Inter-American Strategy for Public Participation in Decision Making for Sustainable Development (ISP).

The ISP is a strategy developed over two years, in collaboration with a broad array of government and civil society representatives throughout the Hemisphere. It seeks to promote transparent, effective, and responsible public participation in decision-making and to foster formulation and execution of sustainable development policies in the Americas. The policy framework contains the basic principles, goals, and policy recommendations for greater involvement of all sectors of society in decision-making on sustainable development.

The Department of Sustainable Development is committed to the development and implementation of policies that ensure civil society (individuals, the private sector, the labor sector, political parties, academics, and other non-governmental organizations) and youth participation in planning, managing, and decision-making for sustainable development.

A crosscutting feature of all programs and projects of the OAS is to support proactively public participation. In the process of developing policies at the hemispheric level, a standard practice of the Department of Sustainable development is to solicit civil society input, through regional consultations and virtual on-line forums.

Public Participation Panels
Hemispheric Consultations Regional Consultations
  • Pathways to Prosperity Dialogue on Public Participation in Sustainable Development. More..