TOOL T-07 | Assessment Checklist | Module 2: Signal Detection & Early Warning

Silence & Passive Consent Checklist

WHEN TO USE After any formal consultation or community meeting; whenever low participation depth or apparent agreement is recorded.

How to Use It

1. Complete this checklist within 24 hours of any formal consultation or community meeting.

2. Review meeting documentation: attendance, discussion log, and any concerns raised.

3. Answer each indicator question and record observations.

4. If three or more indicators suggest non-genuine participation, log a signal in the Signal Tracker and consider triggering the Safe Space Facilitation Protocol.

5. Document the checklist completion as part of the engagement record.

Purpose

To provide a structured prompt for distinguishing genuine agreement from guarded silence, conditional acceptance, or fear-based compliance. Silence and passive participation are among the most misread signals in community engagement, this checklist ensures practitioners pause to interpret them correctly.

Field Rationale

Across sites, attendance at consultations was frequently recorded as evidence of community acceptance. But participation observation at Guimaras and Laguna Lake revealed that community members were attending without expressing genuine concerns, either because they felt decisions were already made, or because they feared consequences for speaking.