Public Vitality: Working with Society When Trust is Uneven

Public institutions depend on society’s trust. Yet trust is rarely built where participation has little consequence. In times of polarization, shrinking civic space, and contested legitimacy, public vitality also depends on whether institutions can remain adaptable without losing their ability to deliver essential public services. This session examines the relationship between administration and civil society where it is most fragile: where participation is uneven, mistrust is high, and expectations are easily disappointed. The session frames civil society as part of the wider ecology through which public legitimacy is either depleted or renewed. It also asks how institutions can stay open under conditions of polarization, noise, and asymmetry – discerning what must be heard, what must be translated, and where boundaries need to remain clear.

In collaboration with Politics for Tomorrow & University of British Columbia