Living Together Promoters - A new profile in behavioral sciences applied to public policy

The "Living Together Promoters" program began in early 2020 as an initiative of the Cordoba City Hall. It is considered innovative because it seeks to promote change management within the Administrative Misdemeanor Court by using diverse methods from behavioral and data sciences. Specifically, to provide evidence about the institutional status quo, and to assess the potential impacts of modifying social behaviors and norms inside of the institution.

Innovation Summary

Innovation Overview

This program was carried out by the Administrative Court of Misdemeanor of Cordoba. The focus of this was to intervene and change the sanctioning paradigm, from collection-only, towards a preventive one that achieves normative recognition and more compliance with the "Code of Coexistence" (Living-together Code) promoted by the city authorities since 2015. At the same time, this program aims to raise awareness and educate on values related to specific unlawful behaviors so that the public officers and the citizens would change their habits and social behavior. To carry on this task the program engaged public servants specialized in legal issues with a mid-level of seniority to assure that they would be heard.

The program beneficiares are all the residents of the city of Córdoba and the different social actors of the academia, the social sector and the private sector. The innovation has a four-stage approach: 1) The creation of a specialized public servant body called "Promotores de Convivencia", 2) The incorporation of design and decision-making methods, as well as Behavioural and Data Sciences to drive change, 3) The use of technological tools in work operations, 4) The adaptation of the "Promotores de Convivencia" to the social context of the Pandemic and Post-Pandemic scenarios.

The creation of the public servants body called “ Promotores de Convivencia” was enacted in 2020; it seeks to define a specific role of agent of change different than any other municipal inspector. Their main functions are: work in prevention, education, and compliance of the "Living-Together code"; also, each of them were trained in team building, soft skills, active listening, mediation, among others to identify and resolve cases more efficiently so they do not escalate to the court. In that way, they would assist the citizens in a proactive and collaborative way.
Incorporating design and decision-making based on Behavioral and Data Sciences. The city pulled out evidence from the different instances of the Administrative Court and was used to work in informing the best ways to improve such status quo by applying change management and behavioral changes. In that sense, intensive sessions of education and training workshops were held and promoted within the municipal instances.
The use of technological tools in work operations: the Citizens Help Centre is a digital channel made for resolving inquiries from the citizens. It consists in two telephone lines specially prepared to answer doubts and queries related to the Administrative Court of Misdemeanours. The use of WhatsApp is also possible. On the same point, the Citizens App is an application that allows to geolocate the complaints related to the lack of maintenance and care in vacant or abandoned land. Furthermore, the platforms for Urban Monitoring and Digital Records made use of the city cameras and digital records of several public authorities to speed up the gathering of evidence and the double-checking of the monitoring and surveillance activities that end up in fines.
The adaptation of the "Promotores de Convivencia" to the social context of the Pandemic and Post-Pandemic required a training to public officers with legal background to understand the citizens approach and needs.

Innovation Description

What Makes Your Project Innovative?

Since its origins this program shows that it is possible to work in an integrative manner. Since 2020 and towards 2022 it displayed:

Control of street vending on public roads and at social economy fairs in different neighborhoods;
The "Responsible Driving" campaign was launched to encourage responsible driving, with alcohol testing.
A preventive operation is being carried out at public shows.
Actions of preventing the insecurity in the streets.
We work with the preventive control of noise nuisance in downtown areas and residential neighborhoods.
The"Escuela de Convivencia" (Living-together School) was created, and promoting the "Código de Convivencia" of the city of Cordoba.
Participated as "overseers" in the democratic processes of the neighborhood centers.
Traffic and environmental infractions are monitored with cameras.

What is the current status of your innovation?

The Living-Together initiative aimed at achieving a paradigm shift in management. We decided to innovate with a public policy that brings together citizens and provides them with a more active role as part of the Municipality of Córdoba. The problems had to be detected jointly by all, both the residents and the state itself, which would control and supervise so that the rules included in the "Código de Convivencia" of the city of Córdoba would be complied with.

In that way the state is no longer only out there to collect and sanction, but to educate, prevent, manage and evaluate the best solutions. To this end, measuring data and quantifying our actions in these 2 (two) years allowed us to be more efficient in the implementation and application of behavioral sciences in the public sphere, to also be able to evaluate and observe the degree of compliance with the rules by the citizen, from this more persuasive and non-coercive approach.

Innovation Development

Collaborations & Partnerships

During these two years we have closed partnership agreements with other areas of the local and State government in the field of Health, Education, Social Policies, the Secretariat of Modernisation, with the Security Forces such as the Provincial Police, Environmental Secretariats, among others. We apply innovative solutions to better reach all the citizens of the city of Cordoba, providing them with solutions and trying to work from a preventive point of view.

Users, Stakeholders & Beneficiaries

The most direct beneficiaries were the citizens of Córdoba. They all received information about the "Living-Together Code" and raised awareness about the city's presence and control and prevention actions given by the "Tribunal de Faltas" of the Municipality.

Innovation Reflections

Results, Outcomes & Impacts

We published reports periodically in the press and social networks, showing how the preventive actions of the "Tribunal de Faltas and Promotores de Convivencia", had a positive impact that caused a decrease in the number of infractions committed. Just in 2021, more than 80% of the environmental offenses detected in vacant lots and pavements were repaired by the offenders without the need for a sanction or fine.

On the other hand, a promising responsible driving campaign is being carried out, which is reducing those infractions that most threaten road safety, such as the use of mobile phones in the car and crossing red lights. It is envisioned that in the future, residents will no longer have to receive a warning or commit an infraction, but that the educational and preventive measures will help them to change their habits and behavior as responsible citizens.

Challenges and Failures

There has been an overlapping of functions with other areas of government, which at the beginning generated differences in criteria. We even had to experience trade union conflicts with other sectors, which is why it was proposed as a challenge to work in a joint and coordinated manner between areas within the municipality.
From the beginning, one of the difficulties was financial. It was also a challenge to streamline the bureaucracy for the acquisition of equipment for the headquarters and the purchase of working tools and elements. In 2022 we had our budget, so we had autonomy and greater availability of economic resources.

Conditions for Success

The main aspect was the enactment of the Living-Together Code back in 2015, which reorients and guides on the duties and rights of the citizens and the local government as well.

Replication

We consider that this program could be used in cities of the same size, or so called “ intermediate cities” above 1 million inhabitants where this process of decentralization could be put into practice. Being able to obtain the necessary changes in the behavior of the citizens implies creating an innovative model that would include stages of education, awareness, implementation, control and supervision of the code of social coexistence.

Lessons Learned

We learned about the needs of continuing working on the identity and professionalization of these public servants, so that they adapt to new demands and have a strong vocation for service. In that way, it is essential that public policies are designed to meet citizens' needs, that they are transparent, measurable and assessable, flexible and adaptable, and sustainable over time.

At the same time, working preventively, in dialogue with neighbors, helps to provide explanations and show results. Emphasizing that having professionals who have soft skills, good education and presence, who are willing to be "preachers of good manners", improves communication and the openness of the neighbor himself (to listen and modify his behavior) and thus collaborate so that conflicts do not increase but are controlled and resolved.

Anything Else?

The problem addressed by this project, emerged from the "Final report of outgoing management (2011-2019)", which highlighted weak points in the municipal system of misdemeanors. While there is a 101% increase in the number of cases. And a policy focused on punishment but with shortcomings in terms of prevention.