Place-Based Inquiry's Potential for Encouraging Public Participation: Stories From the Common Ground Land in Kenora, Ontario

Natural resource management increasingly strives for meaningful public participation as a means to address the complexity, uncertainty, and conflict inherent in planning and decision making. When there are multiple stakeholders, place-based inquiry shows considerable promise as a vehicle for such participation. The Common Ground Land (CGL), important heritage lands in Kenora, Ontario, provides an opportunity to consider the relationship between place-based inquiry and participation. The CGL is the subject of an emerging system of governance initiated by a multistakeholder partnership. Semistructured interviews and modified focus groups were used to promote place-based conversations regarding the CGL. Our inquiry reveals grounded themes related to connections, perspectives, and visions, including subthemes such as respect, spiritual activities, community, and fear of disconnection. Our results illustrate that place-based inquiry has potential to work as a vehicle for meaningful participation, and in this case created a supportive avenue for participation in future CGL planning and decision making.