Stakeholder participation in health impact assessment: A multicultural approach
- Hartog School of Government and Policy, Faculty of Social Sciences, Tel Aviv University, P.O.B. 39040, Tel Aviv 69978 (Israel)
- Department of Health Systems Management, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University, P.O.B. 653, Be'er Sheva 84105 (Israel)
- Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental Research, The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer 84990 (Israel)
- Mitrani Department of Dryland Ecology, Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental Research, The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer 84990 (Israel)
The literature on impact assessment (HIA) registers the importance of stakeholder participation in the assessment process, but still lacks a model for engaging stakeholders of diverse ethnic, professional and sectorial backgrounds. This paper suggests that the multicultural approach can contribute to HIA through a revision of the generic 5-step HIA model, and its implementation in a metropolitan plan in Southern Israel. The health issue scoped by the stakeholders in the HIA is related to land uses in the vicinity of the national hazardous industry and hazardous waste site. The stakeholders were representatives of the diverse populations at stake, including rural Bedouins and Jewish city dwellers, as well as representatives from the public sector, private sector, non-governmental organizations and academia. The case study revealed that a multicultural stakeholder participation process helps to uncover health issues known to the community which were not addressed in the original plan, and provides local knowledge regarding health conditions that is especially valuable when scientific data is uncertain or absent. It enables diverse stakeholders to prioritize the health issues that will be assessed. The case study also reveals ways in which the model needs revisions and improvements such as in recruitment of diverse participants. This paper presents a multicultural model of HIA and discusses some of the challenges that are faced when HIA is implemented in the context of current decision-making culture. -- Highlights: • We revised the generic HIA model in light of the multicultural approach. • We tested the model in a case study of zoning a hazardous industry site. • Multicultural stakeholder participation uncovers health issues known to communities. • It enables community prioritization of health issues. • We present a model for multicultural stakeholder participation in HIA.
- OSTI ID:
- 22246915
- Journal Information:
- Environmental Impact Assessment Review, Vol. 43; Other Information: Copyright (c) 2013 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved.; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0195-9255
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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