Our Commitment to Community Engagement

As we consider how to make Durham the best place to live, work and visit, community engagement has been foundational to establishing Durham Next and the proposed initiatives in the Destination Master Plan.  

The Destination Master Plan team hosted 11 focus groups, 22 interviews, two community town hall events and fielded two community surveys that received more than 2,000 responses to get us to where we are today.  

As we pursue transformative projects, programs and other opportunities we embrace being part of a community that cares deeply about progress. At the center of our work lives Durham's values, its history and people. As this work continues in the years ahead, Durham Next will continue to seek out the perspectives of our community's leaders, economic development partners, culture drivers, residents and business communities.  

Here are the pillars of our approach to community engagement: 

Community
Involvement

Durham Next will actively seek the participation of those potentially affected by the outcome of the project decision-making process. 

Recognizing
History

Durham Next will approach community engagement always considering the histories of Durham and its people. 

Accessibility

Durham Next will build project engagement plans considering common barriers to engagement and ways to adequately address them.

Education

Durham Next will ensure that community members and key players are equipped with the necessary information to engage with the organization from an informed perspective.

Transparency

Durham Next will publicly report the findings from its engagement efforts back to the community to communicate how the feedback received will inform the next phase(s) of the project. 

Join the Durham Next

Community Advisory Council

With a desire to listen and incorporate community input into Durham Next projects, including major initiatives that may call for multiple points of input from a variety of audiences, we knew an innovative and sustainable new approach would be needed to be able to deliver on community expectations in a timely way. The new Durham Next Community Advisory Council will guide our efforts to live up to our community engagement ideals. Learn more.

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