EPISODE · May 31, 2026 · 55 MIN
Season 6, Episode 1 - Has Community Engagement Stopped Being Bold?
from For the Love of Community Engagement · host Becky Hirst
Welcome to Season 6 of For the Love of Community Engagement - and to a brand new chapter for the podcast. Host Becky Hirst introduces her co-host for the season, Dan Ferguson (Founder & CEO of Communiti Labs), as the two join forces to explore The Future of Community Engagement across six episodes and a co-authored white paper.In this first episode, Becky and Dan are joined by Mel Hagedorn, Client Executive at Capire and board member of the Engagement Institute, for a conversation that gets straight to it: has the sector lost its boldness - and if so, why?Together they trace the shift from rich community conversation to data collection at scale, unpack why practitioners so often find their hands tied despite their best intentions, and ask what it would actually look like to do engagement differently. From the dominance of the survey as a default tool, to the untapped potential of AI for genuine listening, to a future where communities own their own conversations - this episode is a provocation, not a prescription.In this episode:Why declining trust scores may signal a sector going through the motionsThe hidden cost of bold engagement - and why doing it well can actually punish practitionersWhat "engagement theatre" really means, and how to move beyond itThe case for getting back to face-to-face, street-level, conversation-first practiceBecky's vision: voice-noting your council. Dan's: sitting on the sidelines, listening in."The future of engagement is not about getting more people in the room or more people to complete the survey. It's about creating the conditions where people's involvement genuinely matters." - Mel Hagedorn
What this episode covers
Welcome to Season 6 of For the Love of Community Engagement - and to a brand new chapter for the podcast. Host Becky Hirst introduces her co-host for the season, Dan Ferguson (Founder & CEO of Communiti Labs), as the two join forces to explore The Future of Community Engagement across six episodes and a co-authored white paper.In this first episode, Becky and Dan are joined by Mel Hagedorn, Client Executive at Capire and board member of the Engagement Institute, for a conversation that gets straight to it: has the sector lost its boldness - and if so, why?Together they trace the shift from rich community conversation to data collection at scale, unpack why practitioners so often find their hands tied despite their best intentions, and ask what it would actually look like to do engagement differently. From the dominance of the survey as a default tool, to the untapped potential of AI for genuine listening, to a future where communities own their own conversations - this episode is a provocation, not a prescription.In this episode:Why declining trust scores may signal a sector going through the motionsThe hidden cost of bold engagement - and why doing it well can actually punish practitionersWhat "engagement theatre" really means, and how to move beyond itThe case for getting back to face-to-face, street-level, conversation-first practiceBecky's vision: voice-noting your council. Dan's: sitting on the sidelines, listening in."The future of engagement is not about getting more people in the room or more people to complete the survey. It's about creating the conditions where people's involvement genuinely matters." - Mel Hagedorn
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Season 6, Episode 1 - Has Community Engagement Stopped Being Bold?
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