The e21 Initiative developed its phase I report on a consensus basis; the ideas and recommendations in in the report were intended as a cohesive package to be taken together and supported as a whole by the e21 stakeholders. Consensus did not mean that each participant is equally enthusiastic about every idea, and, importantly, consensus did not require participants to give up their right to object to future implementation details.
Phase II aimed to build on the consensus recommendations of phase I, but in more specific areas, with more participants involved. That was the goal. The phase II report reflects a great deal of work by participants representing a broad cross-section of the public interest, and a substantial increase in the understanding of the positions and concerns of all participants in this phase. On a number of items, however, consensus was hard to come by. In the end, the e21 co-directors decided not to push the group to final consensus on these items or on the report as a whole, deciding that the additional work and time necessary to come to a more complete consensus would outweigh the benefits of achieving it. Instead, in those areas, the phase II report reflects the range of views held by participants or indicates more specific areas of disagreement.
Each white paper was initially developed in e21 subgroups and informed by discussions in the full e21 group. The phase II overview and summary represent a synthesis of e21’s phase II efforts by staff to e21. Given that this report is not a consensus-based document, the views expressed in this report should not be attributed to any individual participant of e21.
