The Great Plains Consensus Council
KIPCOR provides public policy assistance and training through our affiliate, The Great Plains Consensus Council. It is, simply, an agreement-building resource for public entities.
- was established in 2005 to give name to ongoing consensus building and public policy work, including intervention in public disputes, facilitation of public dialogue, and training governmental entities and others in these areas;
- consists of professionals who are skilled and experienced in managing conflict, researching public issues, and facilitating the development of public policy;
- assists leaders and citizens holding diverse viewpoints to develop public policy solutions that are socially, economically, and environmentally feasible.
Our Mission
The mission of the Great Plains Consensus Council is:
- to provide services for resolving trans-boundary disputes; and
- to encourage innovation in building agreements.
Strengths of the Great Plains Consensus Council
- Experience in designing, convening, and facilitating meetings where leaders and citizens collaborate and resolve difficult problems.
- Knowledge of the region’s culture, history, leaders, issues and people.
- Roots in the communities forming the Great Plains region.
- Availability for meeting the needs of stakeholders and governing entities.
Services
The Great Plains Consensus Council believes considerations such as representation at the negotiating table, clarification of the issues, documentation, procedural rules and neutral facilitation affect the development of public policy solutions acceptable to all stakeholders.
The Great Plains Consensus Council Will:
- Designcollaborative processes to mitigate, resolve, and develop consensus in disputes involving a governmental entity.
- Structureeffective public participation in policy development.
- Consultwith public and private institutions on the resolution of public disputes.
- Facilitateand document public meeting proceedings professionally.
- Provide innovative and practical proposals for the joint management of resources.
Groups served/Issues facilitated by the GPCC
While a list of our clients is confidential, they have included cities and towns, school districts, agencies of the state of Kansas and the federal government, stakeholders of resources, counties, associations, and Native American tribes.
Following are just a few examples of issues GPCC staff have facilitated.
- Watershed management differences between political jurisdictions
- County Conservation District office consolidations (or other options) due to Federal budget cuts
- Formation of the new Missouri River Association of States and Tribes
- Meltdown of an entire school within a Kansas regent’s university
- State allocation of Center for Disease Control funds for HIV prevention
- Development of a Community Developmental Disability Organization’s operational policies and regulations
