During the Council election campaign, Pāuatahanui general ward candidate Moira Lawler opened a Polis Poll on what residents most want for the future of the city. Polis is a dynamic, community-shaped online conversation designed to surface shared priorities and foster constructive debate. This form of wiki-poll allows users to both submit their own ideas and to consider other people’s ideas. As the numbers grow, participants can see where ideas cluster into areas of agreement, as well as where divisions exist.
So far, the poll has had around 100 participants casting some 2,500 votes on 52 statements.
Currently the greatest consensus appears around inclusivity and environmental action, as shown in the following statements:
- Support rewilding of Porirua – more native planting everywhere to support biodiversity in our city, and flood protection (93% support)
- Hold polluters accountable for run-off into the harbour (87% support)
- Develop open, transparent, clear process for direct community engagement in decision making, and solution generation on specific issues (92% support)
- Young people should be provided with multiple opportunities to engage. Funding is not always necessary- go to where they gather (86% support)
- Invest in making Porirua more accessible for our disabled community members (86% support)
Perhaps unsurprisingly, significant division appeared on amalgamation. ‘What was surprising though’ says Lawler ‘was the division on the rates issue given the focus this is given in the media’. The most divisive statements were:
- Focus on what matters most: housing, water, transport, and keeping rates down. Stick to core services and deliver them well (37% agreed; 39% disagreed)
- Keep Porirua decisions in Porirua – don’t merge us into a super-council that won’t understand our communities (47% agreed; 23% disagree)
- Explore a Wellington-wide council to reduce duplication and make local government more efficient (41% agree; 23% disagree)
While the numbers of participation were small, overtime, polls like this can be used to indicate which issues Council is able to progress with some confidence, and which will take more time, more information and more discussion. The Polis process allows all voices to be heard, not just the loudest ones.
‘It’s been really interesting seeing how Polis works and the great comments that have come through from participants’ says Lawler. This is exactly the kind of tool Council could be using to test the temperature on current issues. The Polis poll remains open and can be found on www.moiralawler.nz