Introducing the Engagement Cortex

The Engagement Cortex is our next-generation model of community engagement, informed by more than three years of discussion, engagement and research. It responds to the evolving nature of engagement practice in Australasia, providing a new way to consider influence on decision-making and action across both organisation-led and community-led engagement.

Engagement practice has evolved. Practitioners now work in more dynamic, relational and complex settings, with engagement led by communities as well as organisations. The Engagement Cortex responds to that contemporary practice reality, bridging established principles with the future of the profession.

The Engagement Cortex was developed over three years, shaped by feedback, research and evidence from across Australia and New Zealand. This included:

• Conversations with leading practitioners in 2023, 2024 and again in 2026
• Interactive workshops (F2F and online) with members in 2023, 2024, 2025 and again now in 2026
• Workshops with Trainers
• Surveys in 2025 and 2026
• Conference and NZ Symposium sessions and updates
• Review of community engagement models and research conducted in 2026
• Ongoing conversations and meetings with Engagement Institute members

See the Timeline

Practitioners called for a model that is strategically simple, dynamic, relational and clear about levels of community influence and organisational contribution.

The Engagement Cortex reflects several important developments in practice:

• It applies to organisation-led and community-led engagement.
• It connects community contribution and influence with decisions and actions.
• It recognises that engagement is dynamic and not always a linear process.
• It recognises the role of relationships and partnerships, including long-term engagement.
• It recognises that building understanding is central to engagement.
• It clarifies the role of Inform, making it clear that it is an engagement process and not a communication exercise.

The Engagement Institute is progressing the Engagement Cortex as the next-generation model for contemporary engagement practice in  Australasia.

The Engagement Cortex will underpin the Engagement Institute’s training and will be the recommended model for identifying appropriate levels of community influence in organisation-led engagement and organisational contribution to community-led engagement.

Organisations will decide how and when to transition their own policies, frameworks and practices.

The IAP2 Spectrum remains a tool owned by the International Association for Public Participation, and the Engagement Institute is its Australasian affiliate.

The Engagement Cortex builds on the thinking of many models, including the Engagement Institute’s Community Engagement Model, Arnstein’s Ladder of Participation, Conners New Ladder of Participation, Aggens Orbit of Participation, partnership models and communityled engagement models.

But some people have asked about the differences between the  ngagement  Cortex and the Spectrum. They are:

• Engagement leadership: The Engagement Cortex applies to organisation-led and community-led engagement. The Spectrum applies to organisation-led engagement.
• Community-led engagement: The Spectrum does not address the organisation’s role in community-led engagement.
• Decisions and actions: The Engagement Cortex includes community contribution and influence with decisions and actions. The Spectrum is focused on decision-making.
• Create level: The Engagement Cortex has a “create level” that invites people to develop solutions. The Spectrum does not include create.
• Partnerships: It recognises the role of relationships and partnerships, including longterm engagement. The Spectrum does not include partnerships. Partnerships are widely used in Australasia, especially with First Nations and Māori peoples.
• Building Understanding: The Engagement Cortex recognises that building understanding is central to all engagement, and should always occur.

Organisations will decide how and when to transition their own policies, frameworks and practices.

All Engagement Institute members and engagement practitioners can provide feedback on the Engagement Cortex. Information about the engagement process, key resources and a survey can be found here. You can also leave a quick comment here.

We want to understand the questions, concerns, and information need likely to arise as people encounter and begin using the Engagement Cortex. Feedback can help clarify the explanation, strengthen practical application, and identify the guidance, resources, and examples people will need to incorporate it into their engagement policies and practice.

The decision to proceed with the Engagement Cortex has been made.
This phase of engagement focuses on how we can strengthen the model, develop resources to explain the Engagement Cortex, and apply it in training and engagement practice.

Detailed descriptions of the levels, practical examples and supporting guidance have been developed to help practitioners and organisations apply the Engagement Cortex.

Wider member testing will help strengthen how the model is applied across different settings.

The Engagement Institute will support transition and adoption through guidance, resources,
examples and training.

The Engagement Institute will provide video resources to explain the Engagement Cortex which participants can access prior to their next course.

Yes. Build Understanding remains a level within the Engagement Cortex. Its central position is intentional and does not change its status as a level. It encompasses learning about one another, sharing timely and accurate information, and engaging respectfully.

Whoa, absolutely we are not. The Engagement Cortex describes how an organisation could support community-led engagement.

The name has caused a bit of a stir. The Cortex refers to the brain, which is where we make decisions. The Cortex is where the brain processes data and turns it into sophisticated executive decisions. Cortex positions engagement as the intelligence of the project. It’s scalable, it’s memorable and it reflects evidence based practice and systems thinking.

Check out “Build Understanding” which sits right in the centre. It’s core to all engagement and puts the onus on organisations to do more than just share information. It says organisations and communities who lead engagement must work to build understanding.

It’s no typo. It’s intentional. Check out the words under the headings. One is led by organisations, the other is led by communities, and the role for organisations is quite different.