CDR Associates has pioneered the use of collaborative decision making processes to achieve high-quality, sustainable outcomes in public policy disputes around the United States and abroad.

Public Policy, Environmental & Natural Resource Practice Overview

CDR has pioneered the use of collaborative decision making processes to achieve high-quality, sustainable outcomes in public policy disputes around the United States and abroad. Over the past 20 years we have successfully applied the principles of collaborative decision making in a wide range of contexts, including transportation, water, land use, flood damage reduction, facility siting, hazardous waste cleanup and damages, natural resources, international issues, and education.

Collaborative decision making complements, and does not replace, existing legal and enforcement frameworks and public policy processes. In appropriate circumstances it provides an opportunity for key stakeholders to develop policy options that satisfy many key interests. The specific outcome or goal of a collaborative problem solving process can be tailored to satisfy legal requirements or formal decision making processes. The options or potential solutions developed through a collaborative process often have a better chance of broad, lasting acceptance than solutions developed using other approaches. CDR has worked closely with federal, state, and local agencies, large and small businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and individuals to recognize and constructively pursue opportunities for collaboration, and also to choose another approach when circumstances dictate.

CDR's professional staff is highly skilled in all aspects of effective collaborative decision making- from situation assessments and the convening of meetings to arriving at agreements through facilitated problem solving and mediation.

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We are also experienced working within a broad range of legal, regulatory and enforcement frameworks and policy making processes. In the environmental area these include NEPA, the federal Endangered Species Act, CERCLA, the federal Clean Water Act including Section 404, key federal transportation statutes, the Reclamation Act, and Western Water Law.

CDR combines this knowledge with the ability to work effectively with complex technical and scientific information.Transportation, water, air, endangered species, and land use and planning are our specialties.

Our firm also has unmatched experience in designing and delivering comprehensive training programs. We provide seminars to the general public, specific parties preparing for negotiations, and multiple parties who want to learn common procedures to coordinate their activities. Seminars focus on the effective use of strategic negotiations, collaborative decision making and third party processes (convening, facilitation and mediation) which promote successful settlement initiatives.

CDR has pioneered the use of collaborative decision making processes to achieve high-quality, sustainable outcomes in public policy disputes around the United States and abroad. Over the past 20 years we have successfully applied the principles of collaborative decision making in a wide range of contexts, including transportation, water, land use, flood damage reduction, facility siting, hazardous waste cleanup and damages, natural resources, international issues, and education.

Collaborative decision making complements, and does not replace, existing legal and enforcement frameworks and public policy processes. In appropriate circumstances it provides an opportunity for key stakeholders to develop policy options that satisfy many key interests. The specific outcome or goal of a collaborative problem solving process can be tailored to satisfy legal requirements or formal decision making processes. The options or potential solutions developed through a collaborative process often have a better chance of broad, lasting acceptance than solutions developed using other approaches. CDR has worked closely with federal, state, and local agencies, large and small businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and individuals to recognize and constructively pursue opportunities for collaboration, and also to choose another approach when circumstances dictate.

CDR's professional staff is highly skilled in all aspects of effective collaborative decision making- from situation assessments and the convening of meetings to arriving at agreements through facilitated problem solving and mediation.

Keep reading for a sample list of clients.

Click here for detailed descriptions of services and recent projects

What services does CDR provide?

CDR's professional staff have the experience and skills to provide all critical services associated with high-quality collaborative decision making around environmental and other public policy issues. These services are:

Conducting situation assessments
Convening and information exchange and deliberation process design
Facilitating problem solving dialogues and meetings
Mediating the settlement of disputes, both those that are in and out of court
Consulting and coaching on effective dispute resolution approaches, procedures, strategies and tactics
Training in negotiation, collaborative problem solving, facilitation, and mediation
Providing logistical support for all of the services listed above

We provide these services in a wide variety of contexts, including:

Consultation with government agencies companies and public interest groups considering whether to sponsor or initiate collaborative problem solving,
Preparation of detailed written situation assessments of the prospects for success using collaborative decision making to achieve specific outcomes,
Customized recommendations about the design of collaborative decision making processes
Convening diverse multi-party stakeholder groups
Customized process assistance including facilitation and mediation to stakeholder groups engaged in collaborative problem solving negotiations
Consultation and strategy coaching with parties on how to participate effectively in a collaborative process
Assistance with internal team or coalition negotiations for stakeholder groups that are part of a collaborative process
Work with party's constituents to help educate them about the collaborative problem solving process and the rationale for agreements that have been reached
Implementing public participation processes to solicit input from individuals and groups not directly engaged in decision making, and to inform them about progress being made
Advice on strategies to formalize, coordinate and integrate collaborative decision into legal mechanism such as courts, legislatures or administrative/executive decisions

What substantive expertise does CDR offer to assist in collaborative problem solving on environmental issues?

CDR offers expertise on effective procedures for conducting successful collaborative decision making and negotiations. In general, we believe that stakeholders themselves, or substantive experts whose services the parties jointly secure, are best suited to provide substantive information needed in productive deliberation processes. However, our extensive experience in facilitating a wide variety of public policy, environmental and natural resource problems and conflicts along with familiarity with the issues they entail, enables us to provide the best process assistance available that is specifically relevant and tailored to help address key issues in question.

We recognize that there is a range of perspectives among conflict management practitioners and potential or actual stakeholders about the importance and level of substantive knowledge that it is important for third parties to have. In the natural resource area there has been a trend that supports at least some familiarity with and technical information and law in addition to process expertise.

We approach each issue or project on a case-by-case basis. We match our professional staff to specific projects based on their specific expertise and experience. One example is in the law. While our staff do not practice law, we can provide intermediaries who are lawyers and are familiar with legal processes and substantive legal knowledge. Similarly, our staff have been educated through their work in a range of technical disciplines such as transportation, water, land use and planning and planning. We are often able to provide intermediaries with substantial experience working on projects where these disciplines are relevant.

Listed below are description of two of CDR's major practice areas in public policy, environmental and natural resource conflict management, and descriptions of a number of other projects in this arena. Please feel free to contact us for additional information on any of these initiatives and how our staff might help in addressing similar issues, problems or conflicts.

RECENT CLIENTS
ARCO
Asarco
Boulder County, Colorado
Chevron
Denver County, Colorado
El Dorado County California
Denver International Airport
Dow Chemical
EXXON Company, USA
Flatirons Sand and Gravel
Georgia Pacific Corporation
GTZ (Germany)
Indonesian Ministry of the Environment
Indonesian Environmental Impact Management Agency
The International Finance Corporation
LEAD International
Public Service Company of Colorado
Public Service Company of New Mexico
Regional Transportation District
State of California department of Water Resources
State of Colorado Departments of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Transportation
State of Kansas, Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources
State of Minnesota, Department of Natural Resources
State of Nebraska, Department of Natural Resources
State of New Jersey, Department of Environmental Protection, office of State Planning and Department of Transportation
State of Pennsylvania, Department of Environmental Protection
State of Washington, Department of Transportation
Sun Oil Company
The United Nations Development Program
Transportation Corridors Agency (Orange County, CA)
United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)
US Air Force
US Bureau of Reclamation
US Department of the Interior
US Environmental Protection Agency
US Fish and Wildlife Service
US Department of Justice
Western Area Power Administration
The World Bank