Agenda setting within a community-based food security planning process: The influence of power

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of using citizen politics as a framework for empowering citizens to build a community food security agenda. Design: A critical perspective, case study design, and multiple qualitative methods were used. Participants/Setting: Forty-four participants were purposefully recruited to participate in a community-based planning process called a search conference (SC). Seven additional disenfranchised stakeholders who did not attend the SC were also recruited to participate. Phenomenon of Interest: To assess how power influenced agenda setting and to determine the extent to which disenfranchised stakeholders' most salient interests were incorporated into the final SC action agendas. Analysis: The constant comparison method, content analysis, and consensus were used to produce the final analysis. Results: Power influenced agenda setting by managing knowledge, problem framing, trust, and consent. Two of seven of disenfranchised stakeholders' most salient interests, including need for adequate food preparation skills and increased availability of locally produced foods, were incorporated into the final SC action agendas. Conclusions and Implications: Citizen politics can be used to build a community food security agenda on issues that are not at odds with stakeholders in positions of power. To bring about change on issues in which power differences between groups are substantial, additional theoretical frameworks and public policy-making models are needed.