Justice as Parity of Participation

Problem, research strategy, and findings: Social justice is often considered the goal of participatory planning, yet justice is typically not operationalized, broadly defined, or clearly linked with participatory practice. We expand on Sherry Arnstein’s concern with the redistribution of power between the state and citizens by juxtaposing her ladder of participation with Nancy Fraser’s framework of justice. Fraser’s approach to justice seeks parity—defined as the social arrangements that enable people to participate as peers in public life—across economic, cultural, and political domains. Fraser provides principles to guide planners in determining what is just and unjust in participatory initiatives. Principles include ensuring proper participatory procedures, recognizing minority viewpoints and perspectives, attending to the framing of public issues, and remediating inequitable social structures. We illustrate the practical application of Fraser’s justice framework by drawing on examples from public engagement with climate change.Takeaway for practice: Although Fraser does not provide a tool kit for action, we offer suggestions for how planners can apply a justice framework to improve participatory practice. Planners can a) require appropriate procedures to ensure that all relevant people and perspectives are represented at the appropriate scale; b) ensure all perspectives—not just dominant ones—are recognized and valued; and c) respond to and mitigate the inequitable distribution of wealth and resources.