| Summary: | The Cowichan and Chemainus Valleys Ecomuseum is a regional heritage
demonstration project initiated by Heritage Canada, B.C. Heritage Trust and the
local governments of the Cowichan Valley Regional District in 1988. This
thesis used the Ecomuseum as a case study to investigate how and why people
participate in public processes, specifically from the perspective of the
participants themselves. The study provides a documentation and analysis of
individual participatory experiences across a range of public involvement
activities.
The thesis has two main purposes. The research provides conclusions
which may be useful in the design and implementation of the Ecomuseum's
future public involvement activities and similar projects. As well,
implications from the research are identified which contributes to a better
understanding of public participation in context of community development.
The study outlines the participatory process of the Cowichan and
Chemainus Valleys Ecomuseum, provides a descriptive evaluation of
individuals' participatory experiences and summarizes individual reports
across different types of participatory activities. The research methods
included a general literature review, a review of the documents, materials and
organizational files of the Ecomuseum Society, the development of a
newspaper survey and personal interviews with 24 participants. A content
analysis of the interviews and surveys was used to summarize the research
findings.
Activities of the Ecomuseum Society are guided by principles of
community participation and consensus decision-making in pursuit of three
recognized objectives:
- To preserve and present the history and living heritage of the British
Columbia forest legacy of the Cowichan and Chemainus Valleys;
- To increase resident and visitor awareness and appreciation of this
heritage through the management of unique resources
- To stimulate regional economic growth through appropriate tourism
development and marketing of forest related "heritage experiences".
With its emphasis on local involvement, the Ecomuseum is pioneering a
new approach to community-based tourism and community development in
general. Active public participation is the cornerstone of the ecomuseum
concept. To date, the only formal evaluation of the Ecomuseum's progress has
been a telephone survey to determine the level of resident awareness
regarding the Ecomuseum. Given the critical role of public participation in
the development of an ecomuseum, additional evaluation of the project was
necessary to provide information about local involvement.
Research on patterns of public participation suggest that different
groups of people participate in different types of activities. As well, these
patterns of participation may be identified and categorized by a variety of
psychosocial variables perhaps more accurately than by a composition of
demographic characteristics. During its five years of operation, the
Ecomuseum has developed a wide range of public involvement activities to
facilitate local participation. Six general categories of participation can be
identified: general, passive participation, such as attending displays, lectures
and tours; public forums; educational/ training programs; general volunteer
work; working committees and specific Ecomuseum development projects.
This study examined the usefulness of developing participant group profiles
based on the descriptive experiences of individual participants. As well, the
research investigated the hypothesis that different people participate in
different types of activities through a comparison of participant profiles in
each of the six categories of participation noted above.
The research provides information about the experiences of local
participants, their preferences and patterns of participation which is useful to
the Cowichan and Chemainus Valleys Ecomuseum Society. The findings
suggest that the initial reasons for individuals partaking in a particular
activity will be common for members of a particular activity, but are different
across different types of participation.
Regardless of the type of activity people were participating in, most
people indicated a common preference for certain kinds of activities. These
included activities of a general, passive nature as well as those with an
educational component. Within the category of general, passive activities,
participants from the entire range of activity types again showed similar
preferences. Exhibits/ displays, tours and lectures/ presentations were cited
as common preferences although participants gave different reasons for their
preference.
While the main purpose of the research was to draw out implications for
future activities of the Cowichan and Chemainus Valleys Ecomuseum,
information from this research can be generally applied to community
development public processes in general. Empowering a community to affect
change requires developing the skills, capabilities and confidence of
individuals to the point where they can take action. Improving the individual
participatory experience is a means of increasing people's effectiveness in the
collective process of community development. If the intention is to provide
people with participatory opportunities which respond to their needs,
information about participants' needs and desires is necessary. Research
which focuses specifically on the participant's perspective should be
encouraged. The development of participant profiles is suggested as a means
of generating information which is useful in designing future participatory
processes. Ultimately, the purpose is to facilitate the development of effective
and satisfying opportunities for participation.
The research findings were reviewed for their contribution to better
understanding processes which facilitate increased levels of participation,
project efficiency, effectiveness and self-reliance through local participation.
The study does not provide a blueprint for designing public processes instead,
the intention of the research is to stress certain aspects of the participants'
perspectives which have implications for public participation processes in
general and which should be considered in future research. === Applied Science, Faculty of === Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of === Graduate
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