The Institut du Nouveau Monde (INM) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to increase citizen participation in democratic life in Quebec. According to its director, Malorie Flon, citizen participation is a key to a healthy democracy, serving as an essential complement to representative democracy.
Missions Publiques: What is your background in the field of participation, and what are the main missions of the INM?
Malorie Flon: I have a background in history and political science, and I have been heavily involved in student associations. My encounter with public participation occurred during a work experience in South Africa. Shortly before the 2010 FIFA World Cup, I was helping informal economy workers connect with major cities in the country to ensure they also benefited economically from the event. I discovered that creating spaces for exchange between people with diverse interests to define better public policies was fascinating.
After working in international cooperation, I joined the INM about fifteen years ago. The INM works to raise awareness about the benefits, limits, and success conditions of citizen participation among various actors and, importantly, to instil a participatory reflex in elected officials and civil servants within our public organizations. In recent years, we have supported and facilitated large-scale participatory processes that have had concrete effects on public policies in Quebec, such as youth protection(1), the revision of the daycare services law(2), and the modernization of the police(3), among others. We also conduct various citizenship education programs to strengthen young people’s dialogue skills. Lastly, we have a think tank where we leverage the collective intelligence from our initiatives to inform on deliberation methods, experiment with different participatory methods, and amplify citizen voices in the public space.
"The government must collaborate with civil society to address threats weakening our democracies, such as misinformation, polarization, or declining electoral participation.
Malorie Flon
Director of the Institut du Nouveau Monde
Missions Publiques: What is your view on the evolution of public participation practices in Quebec?
Malorie Flon: The culture of participation has evolved significantly in recent years. The use of public participation is more assertive, even in the topics addressed. Previously, consultations mainly focused on urban planning and development issues; today, we also tackle public safety issues. For example, following a recommendation from an independent consultation by a parapublic organization on systemic racism, we organized a consultation on the competency profile for the future police chief of Montreal. It is positive to seek citizen expertise on such diverse perspectives.
Additionally, there is a societal consensus on the benefits of public participation—although some elected officials still see it as a necessary evil—allowing gradual debates on how to effectively implement public participation. The questions are now more about the most effective modalities and timing for public decision-making: how to participate effectively given the available resources? When to initiate a process? What are the most suitable mechanisms for certain types of audiences? These are often more technical than fundamental questions that will improve our practices, as today, we see poorly conducted consultations.
To improve our practices, we need collective progress by offering qualifying training to public administration professionals. There is a growing need for support for professionals and politicians, which requires more qualified and trained individuals in public participation. The lack of expertise in many institutions is evident, particularly through the overuse of online questionnaires or calls for submissions, to the detriment of innovative or more deliberative participatory practices. Quebec is falling behind in deliberative practices compared to what is happening in Europe today, such as the growing number of Citizens’ Assemblies or mixed commissions in Belgium.
Missions Publiques: Historically, Quebec has been a pioneer in establishing institutions dedicated to public participation. How do you explain this delay?
Malorie Flon: Until recently, the Public Consultation Office of Montréal (OCPM) and the Office of Public Hearings on the Environment (BAPE), the institutions you likely refer to, have heavily relied on traditional consultative mechanisms. But this is changing, and their approaches are becoming increasingly accessible and varied. The Public Consultation Office of Longueuil is an example of a new body integrating deliberative practices, as is the Consultation Forum of the Health and Welfare Commissioner. However, with a few exceptions, especially regarding provincial government ministries and agencies, deliberative spaces allowing the public to express opinions on bills or public policies are ad hoc and temporary and are not institutionalized.
Quebec has a history of mobilization and social dialogue on issues such as education and poverty reduction, for example. The province experienced significant summits in the 1990s that led to major changes. This trend of social dialogue and participation must be nurtured; it does not happen on its own. It may be less visible in recent years partly because, faced with urgent and accelerating societal needs (ecological crisis, housing crisis, growing inequalities), there is a tendency to rush processes, to go too fast. However, skipping public participation risks making mistakes, accepting blind spots, and ultimately prolonging the journey.
International collaboration between countries is beneficial for refreshing our practices and drawing inspiration from one another. The government must collaborate with civil society to address threats weakening our democracies, such as misinformation, polarization, or declining electoral participation. For me, public participation is key to avoiding the cynicism leading to authoritarian tendencies.
