December 2003, Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP)
The purpose of this Guide is to introduce the fundamentals of public involvement, to help design an effective public involvement program and to serve as an on-going reference for public involvement activities.
This guide will help to: understand the fundamentals of public involvement; express the business case for public involvement; develop and implement public involvement programs that suit the unique requirements of different activities and stakeholders; and evaluate public involvement results. This Guide does not explain detailed how-to’s, or operational, licensing or regulatory requirements that must be completed or meet. The content of this Guide is not prescriptive but rather is meant to provide useful information to consider how to get started in developing public involvement programs. This Guide simply recommends best practices – how each member company chooses to build and manage its public involvement program is up to that company.
Scope of Information this Guide Offers
This Guide will help you to:
- understand the fundamentals of public involvement;
- express the business case for public involvement;
- develop and implement public involvement programs that suit the unique requirements of different activities and stakeholders; and,
- evaluate public involvement results.
This Guide does not explain detailed how-to’s, or operational, licensing or regulatory requirements that you must complete or meet. The content of this Guide is not prescriptive but rather is meant to provide useful information for you to consider to get started in developing your own public involvement programs. This Guide simply recommends best practices – how each member company chooses to build and manage its public involvement program is up to that company. Furthermore, while there are references throughout the Guide to regulations and regulatory agencies that you should be aware of, this is not a complete listing of regulations and agencies. Part of creating your public involvement program is to research any operational or regulatory commitments that must be met on a continuous basis.
Who Should Use this Guide?
This Guide is intended for CAPP member company employees, contractors, community relations practitioners, project managers and others new to public involvement and who may find themselves dealing with stakeholders less knowledgeable, or very familiar with the upstream oil and gas industry.
When to Use this Guide
You can use this Guide as a reference when your company is:
- planning a new project;
- operating in a new area;
- expecting a significant change in an existing business activity that warrants a public involvement program; or,
- using public involvement as part of a long-term stakeholder relations strategy.
