Conceptualising engagement and participation as steps on a continuum is useful as it enables the current level of intervention to be identified and how progress towards empowerment can be made. In many emergencies, especially during the acute response phase, non-participation and tokenism are still predominant with affected communities being treated as passive recipients of aid. It can also be argued that the urgency of an acute emergency dictates an appropriately lower level of participation. 

Meaningful participation is dynamic and is only achieved when people and communities are involved in the decision making process. There are a variety of models of community engagement and participation and most refer to different levels of engagement. An example is the figure below which describes five different levels, often referred to as the levels of participation: inform, consult, involve, collaborate and empower.  

At the beginning of an emergency, people need vital information about how to protect themselves and where to get help (inform). However, there is always time to ask people about what they need and as time goes on, this consultation should broaden and deepen to help shape WASH programme activities (consult). Even at the start of an emergency there will be opportunities to involve people in making decisions about e.g. the design of facilities and to provide feedback about the programme (involve). As communities begin to organise, they can choose to partner with responders, taking the initiative and proposing improvements (collaborate). Empowerment is usually seen as the highest level and involves communities working collectively to gain control over their lives and make decisions. Some more recent models refer to a level beyond this that describes people recognising the importance and support of others – though they are in control, they may choose to call in outside support and advice. 

Empowerment necessarily involves changes in power dynamics. People who have power may relinquish it in favour of those with less – or hand power back to people - ultimately creating a more equitable society. Empowerment, however, cannot be forced on people: they need to embrace it willingly. Some people may choose not to participate and there may be numerous reasons for this including lack of confidence, motivation or opportunity, fear, or family and work pressures among others.