Without the benefit of a crystal ball, Consensus is in the business of predicting the future. It looks for issues just peeking over the horizon that, if addressed now, can provide opportunities or reduce perils in the future.

One way in which it addresses those issues is by engaging citizens in public policy studies. These studies are built around the belief that citizens can learn about a situation and find innovative new approaches, in part because they aren’t weighed down by how things have always been done. In addition, a diverse group of people brings with them knowledge from their own disciplines or personal experiences, which can lead to breakthrough thinking.

Citizen-based Consensus studies have been the catalyst for new laws and new or improved programs. Here’s a sample:

• Library Structure & Funding. Released in 2004, “Making Book: Gambling on the Future of Our Libraries,” has received national attention for its analysis of public libraries in metro Kansas City. It was the subject of an article in American Libraries, the summary printed in Public Library Quarterly, and it is on the recommended reading list of the national OCLC corporation. It is also required reading in two master’s level library science programs, at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and Dominican University. The white paper recommends changes in state laws and policies governing public libraries.
  
  
• Complete "Making Book" report.
• "Making Book" executive summary.
• Library Journal article about "Making Book."
  

• Libraries Together in Scott County. Completed in 2005, this 10-month study was commissioned by four public libraries in the county surrounding Davenport, Iowa. The study included extensive research, two county-wide surveys and a week-long series of deliberative forums. The final report suggests three options for action – be more independent, collaborate, or unify – and the likely stakeholder response to each. The library directors have created an action plan to implement the preferred option and to encourage changes in state law recommended by the Consensus team. All reports are available at www.librariestogether.org.
  
  
• Final report for Libraries Together in Scott County
• Article about Libraries Together in IAP2 Participation Quarterly
• Article about Libraries Together in American Libraries
  

• School District Governance. This study , released in 2001, focused on the role of school boards in improving student learning, and recommends changes in how boards operate and engage citizens and in how members are elected.

• Safe Neighborhoods. Released in 1995, this study examined the people, places and policies that affect neighborhoods. It recommended changes, such as defined roles and responsibilities for neighborhood organizations and a metro-wide council of neighborhoods.

• Metropolitan Funding for Culture and Recreation. This study recommended a bi-state tax for culture and recreation that would provide funding for major regional attractions and arts organizations. Consensus worked for ten years with Missouri and Kansas legislators to get identical enabling legislation passed. Others took on the job of getting citizen approval to use the bi-state tax to fund renovation of Union Station.

• Child Care. This study identified the need for an agency that would provide referrals to parents seeking child care and work to increase the quality and quantity of child care in the metro area. The Mid-America Regional Council implemented the recommendation by forming what is now known as the Metropolitan Council on Early Learning.
  

• Voting by Mail. The study recommended that Missouri, like Kansas, allow citizens to vote by mail in non-candidate elections. It worked with Missouri state legislators to gain passage of a law allowing mail-ballot elections.

• Minority Business Development. Task force members identified minority business development as the issue with the greatest potential for improving race relations. The report offers recommendations for increasing access to mainstream markets, access to capital, and entrepreneurial training for minority entrepreneurs. Several recommendations were implemented, including an Adopt-a-Vendor program at the Kansas City Minority Suppliers Council. The report continues to be cited in Urban League reports on the state of Kansas City’s African-American community.

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