Why Stakeholder Dialogue?
Over the past decade, inclusive and participatory decision-making has emerged as a key component of sustainable development. In the business sector, for example, stakeholder engagement is now considered essential in the formulation and implementation of corporate sustainability strategies. Environmental management schemes, such as EMAS II*, prescribe consultation and stakeholder involvement as a prerequisite for accreditation.

Who is running courses in Ireland?
As in other countries, the need to improve the processes of stakeholder dialogue in Ireland is quite apparent. The advent of The Aarhus Convention and the consequent EC Directives on access to decision-making has brought new emphasis to that need. Schia Mitchell and Michael Ewing, recognising this, decided to develop improved capacity for meaningful stakeholder dialogues, smoothing the road to sustainability in Ireland, by establishing training courses here, under the name of Dialogue for Sustainability, Ireland (DSI). Over the course of the first year it is hoped to develop a team of trainers based in Ireland.

What is Stakeholder Dialogue Training?
When planning for or dealing with environmental, community and sustainability issues it is vital that all those concerned with the issue are involved in the process. Only by bringing together individuals and organisations to talk about the issues can sustainable solutions be found.
Stakeholder Dialogue helps manage this process by using techniques which enable different parties with differing - and often conflicting - standpoints to work together to find a solution which is acceptable to everybody.
The definitive three-part series of training courses in Stakeholder Dialogue offers a comprehensive methodology for this type of facilitation and engagement

Who should attend?
Stakeholder Dialogue provides organisations from all sectors with a key tool in building successful relationships and formulating long-term partnerships. Course participants are usually involved in developing participatory approaches, be it for the implementation of corporate sustainability strategies, local government planning processes or the involvement of stakeholder groups for environmental initiatives.
Over the years, hundreds of participants from the business, government and voluntary sectors have attended these training courses and have been able to apply the facilitation skills and techniques learnt, in their specific fields.

Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the voluntary sector
Non-governmental organisations have long been at the forefront of both raising public awareness of environmental and sustainability issues and delivering solutions to them. As NGOs have recognised the need for co-operation rather than conflict, initial adversarial relationships with business and government are increasingly replaced by partnerships with these sectors.
Our training courses offer a comprehensive methodology for engagement with organisations from all sectors, as well as tools for facilitating effective internal decision-making structures and processes.

The public sector
Local government and statutory agencies are required to consult stakeholders within many of their activities, such as local planning processes, EMAS, permitting and licencing, the development of Local Agenda 21 and community strategies.
Training in Stakeholder Dialogue and facilitation will help public organisations to build the necessary capacity to formulate valuable long-term partnerships with local communities, businesses and voluntary organisations that go beyond traditional consultation approaches, and to fulfil their obligations under the EC Directives emanating from the Aarhus Convention.

The business sector
Stakeholder engagement has emerged as a cornerstone of the formulation and implementation of corporate sustainability strategies and environmental management schemes such as EMAS among leading businesses.
Stakeholder Dialogue provides businesses with a key tool in building successful relationships with customers, pressure groups, regulators and local government. It also demonstrates an effective and transferable methodology for decision-making within various organisational settings

The core training course series

Course 1: Facilitation skills and principles
Course 2: Designing and managing dialogue processes
Course 3: Further skills development for complex dialogue processes

If you would like to know more about 'Dialogue for Sustainability' and the training courses on offer, please email

Michael Ewing at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or Schia Mitchell at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

*EMAS: Eco Management and Sustainability