Background

The deployment of Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) creates the potential to transform society by “reducing crashes, alleviating congestion, diminishing pollution, and increasing mobility while improving travel time.” In addition to improving safety, AVs may also increase mobility and create economic and social opportunity for the underserved, including low income, disabled, and elderly communities. However, numerous challenges exist, which require developing a better understanding of the problems as people experience and perceive them across communities, as well as identifying innovative solutions to those problems by tapping the collective intelligence of diverse and creative experts. To build upon AARP leadership as a next-generation listening organization that leverages the latest technology to enhance member engagement, GovLab lays out 8 cost-effective dialogic mechanisms for open and engaged policymaking. Rooted in both empirical research and practice, these recommendations focus on processes that have a proven track record for efficient and effective policy consultation. In this report, we discuss each of these recommendations in depth and provide specific guidance with regard to implementation and how to use these methods to get more people to respond; obtain diverse, innovative and unexpected ideas; go beyond screeds and rants; and increase legitimacy and effectiveness of its policymaking through more active and engaged forms listening.

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