Listening Before Leading: Establishing Public Trust Through Authentic Community Engagement

By Michelle Kennedy, Senior Manager at BerryDunn

If you work in local government, you have probably felt it: residents expect more transparency, faster responsiveness, and clearer follow-through than they did even a few years ago. At the same time, the “trust cushion” many communities once had is thinner. In a Pew Research Center survey conducted in late 2023, 61% of adults rated their local government positively, down from 66% in 2022 and 69% in 2019. That slide is not a judgment on any one decision. It is a signal that trust is increasingly earned through day-to-day experiences.

Authentic vs. Symbolic Engagement

Most residents can quickly tell whether engagement is designed to inform a decision or simply validate one that is already made. Participatory budgeting research summarized by the National Civic League shows that in jurisdictions using participatory budgeting, public trust rose from 55% in 2020 to 70% in 2024. But the trust gains were weaker when participation was consultative or symbolic and final decisions remained opaque. Trust increased most where residents could monitor implementation, track spending, and see projects completed as approved.

A Repeatable Engagement Cycle That Builds Credibility

One of the simplest ways to make engagement more trustworthy is to make it more predictable. Local governments build trust when they engage early and continuously, use plain language, and show responsiveness with timely updates and clear next steps.

A practical cycle looks like this:

Before Decisions

• Define the decision, constraints, timeline, and what “influence” means.
• Be explicit about what is already decided and what is truly open.

During Engagement

• Gather input in multiple formats (in-person, virtual, written).
• Design for accessibility (language access, disability access, schedule realities).

After Engagement

• Publish “what we heard,” “what we’re doing,” and “why.”
• Report progress so residents can track follow-through over time.

Design Engagement That is Meaningful, Not Performative

Good engagement starts with clarity: What are you trying to learn, and who needs to be in the conversation for the input to be legitimate?

The IAP2 Spectrum of Public Participation is useful here because it forces an honest choice about the public’s role. It also includes “promise language” that helps set expectations, from “we will keep you informed” to “we will implement what you decide.” When you name the level up front, you reduce frustration later.

Reach Beyond the “Usual Voices”

Many jurisdictions get steady input, but from a narrow slice of the community. Expanding participation usually takes more than better marketing. It takes multiple pathways for participation and some humility about barriers. Washington’s Municipal Research and Services Center’s guidance highlights the need for intentional strategies to include underrepresented communities and to practice “early and continuous” participation, not one-time outreach.

Create Safe Spaces for Candid Input

On sensitive topics, residents may not speak honestly in a microphone line. Authentic engagement often requires smaller settings, facilitated conversations, and culturally sensitive approaches that acknowledge history, including prior failed engagement. The goal is two-way communication, not a one-way broadcast.

An Engagement Integrity Checklist

1. Purpose and Promise: Which IAP2 level are we using, and what is our promise to the public?
2. Inclusion and Access: How will we remove barriers (plain language, language access, multiple formats)?
3. Trustworthiness and Relationships: How will we sustain relationships beyond this project?
4. Decision Linkage: How will input connect to policy action, and how will we show that connection?
5. Close the Loop: When and how will we publish “what we heard / what we did / why” and report progress?

Listening before leading is not about slowing decisions. It is about making better ones and earning trust through transparency, follow-through, and real community influence. In the long run, that trust becomes the foundation for decisions that last.

Learn more about BerryDunn here.