Athena Bulletin

By: Amber Siefer

There is growing recognition that people are inseparable from the systems we design—from the modernization of technology to the development of organizations and their workforces. These systems shape daily life, often unevenly, whether or not they were created with shared understanding and intent.

Strong systems depend on strong relationships.

When public investments fall short, frustration follows—for the public, policymakers, practitioners, and advocates alike. These failures are rarely accidental. We are living through profound change alongside deep and persistent disparities. Social and economic divides not only explain many policy breakdowns; they amplify the crises we face.

The question is not whether public investments should do better, but how. How do we move beyond expensive, performative solutions and redesign systems that consistently produce disappointing outcomes?

One important starting point is a simple but often overlooked truth: all human systems are relational. The relationships between people—past and present—and across processes form the backbone of every system. Efforts that ignore or deprioritize direct experience, power dynamics, and human needs tend to struggle or fail, no matter how technically sound they appear.

People and systems thrive through healthy, mutually beneficial connections.

Participatory action research (PAR) is one approach to strengthen how public systems function by integrating lived experience, shared leadership, and continuous learning through research-to-action or for-change approaches with those most affected by an issue. By engaging the full continuum of stakeholders – administrators and frontline workers, community members and connectors, policymakers and advocates, as co-leaders and not just contributors, PAR approaches are bridges for shared understanding across differences in race, culture, background, and role. PAR creates shared spaces for people with different experiences to learn and act together, modernize programs, and improve outcomes collectively.

Public investments perform best when relationships are treated as core infrastructure, so that rules-based systems can adapt to changing needs and conditions. When relational engagement is under-resourced, even well-designed technical solutions can fall short in practice.

Public systems must continually evolve to deliver shared public value. Participatory action approaches don’t slow that work—it makes it smarter, more equitable, and ultimately more successful in creating systems that are responsive, trusted and effective in practice.

Amber Siefer, MPA, is an applied researcher and community development professional with more than a decade of experience in senior management consulting, project management, and interdisciplinary research. She specializes in designing and leading participatory research, evaluations, and studies that address pressing public policy issues in partnership with organizations that serve the public.

Contact us with a general question or schedule a free 30-minute call to learn how participatory action research can directly support your work.

Follow us to learn more. This article kicks off a series that will dive further into participatory and human-centered approaches that bridge the divide between policy goals and public outcomes including community outreach, relational engagement, and leadership coaching solutions offered by The Athena Group.