Current Report Phase: Environmental Scan
To accomplish the committee's purpose, the committee undertakes a 7-phase study process to research issues and prepare reports.
During the Environmental Scan, the committee researches the topic in greater depth.
This search for information from many different areas assists the committee in determining the scope of the report. Most issues become unwieldy if not narrowed to a more focused subject matter.
Research is varied depending upon the topic chosen. Often members read and discuss articles and books broadly defining the topic. Department directors have knowledge of particular issues as do representatives from the private sector and academia. Sometimes conferences, seminars, tours or workshops are timed to coincide with the committee’s research.
Committee members develop a vision of the county twenty or thirty years in the future with relationship to the topic. Putting the mission of the report into words helps the committee define the scope of the report and stay on course over the ensuing months.