Stakeholder inclusion in scenario planning—A review of European projects

Stakeholder inclusion is a core element of many scenario planning practices. The literature on this topic is vast and has documented that involving stakeholders in such processes is crucial to secure an impact on actual decision making and produce positive societal outcomes. However, few studies have homed in on more detailed questions about exactly why, how and to what ends engaging diverse stakeholders matters to scenario planning. This study of stakeholder inclusion in scenario planning for policy making reflects on four detailed key arenas. We first investigate the concept of stakeholders and how the scenario planning literature considers them. We explore the different types of relevant actors to include in a participatory scenario process, and we probe which methods are used to identify stakeholders to engage. Second, we investigate the role or function of stakeholders in the scenario planning process and find that stakeholder involvement has specific and detailed functions in particular phases of scenario planning. Third, we explore which methods are used to include stakeholders in scenario planning processes. Finally, in a synthesis across the study, we explore some of the key tensions and open questions related to including stakeholders in scenario planning processes.