Context
The broader goal of this course and the assignments are to improve your critical thinking skills and enhance your
ability to identify and negotiate conflicting interests and positions in real-life policy debates. Creating a stakeholder
map is an vital skill that can help you better understand complex case studies, while providing you with hands-on
experience sought after by employers.
Instructions
The main purpose of this assignment is to select a real life contemporary urban issue, and to identify relevant
stakeholders that are involved. Stakeholders can be individuals, organizations, public/private interests, (non)-
formal groups, and (non)-state actors that have a vested interest in the outcome of a decision-making process.
First, you should identify a specific urban issue/problem in a metropolitan region. This issue can be based in any
country you choose. See the Toronto Vital Signs 2019 report for possible topics.
Second, create your list of stakeholders, and then prioritize and organize them in terms of relevance. (i.e., Who
has power? Who has agency? Who has the most support?) Then, place the stakeholders you consider as the
most relevant in the centre of your map, with the less relevant actors placed at the periphery.
Thirdly, identify and label the connections, networks, and coalitions (i.e., actual or potential) between your
stakeholders. Consider how the actions, or inaction, of each stakeholder can affect others on your map.
Finally, critique and analyze your map through the perspectives or lenses of two different stakeholders that you
have identified. (300 words)
Additional things to consider:
How does scale improve or impair your overall analysis?
Are there any large/external factors that may play a role in your issue?
How do temporal factors affect the issue?
Some useful links identifying stakeholders:
https://www.unitedwaygt.org/list-of-agencies
http://www.toronto-charities.ca/toronto-charities-list/
https://www.moneysense.ca/save/budgeting/canadas-top-rated-charities-top-100/
https://www.allianceon.org
https://charityvillage.com
https://www.volunteertoronto.ca/
https://www.goodwork.ca/
https://www.bot.com/