Cool Tools for Government
We're looking at 'cool tools' that allow us to re-think public services. Who are the people seeing the gaps between individuals and institutions, and how are they filling them? How do we close feedback loops?
- Mashup politics - when everyday democracy meets the web The personal democracy forum conference (and unconference) are over until 2008. Two main things struck me. First, the younger generation (as Danah Boyd pointed out) don't think of the internet as 'not real' - it is an indivisible part of their social lives. It follows that the virtual/physical divide won't be as obvious in the next elections either. The Pew survey on politics and the internet shows how quickly things are changing. In 2006, 23% of people who are using the internet for politics... continue reading on 21st May 2007
- The Medium is the Message? What better way to dispel the accusations that you're vacuous and policy-lite than to air your very own video podcast, or vodcast or...webcameron - noting your whimsical and more sincere policy insights and firing them into the open-access heaven of the internet? Talking straight to the people, wired straight into the public consciousness - no middlemen, no journo agendas, no spin; just your ideas with the ecover, some washing up, drying underpants and breakfast with the wife and kids.Are the... continue reading on 2nd October 2006 Comments (7)
- collective action? I think pledgebank is one of the best examples of connecting individual's social concerns with wider action. This happens on the individual's terms -- you make a pledge and hope that others sign on.Tom Steinberg says "We all know what it is like to feel powerless, that our own actions can't really change the things that we want to change. PledgeBank is about beating that feeling..."Of course this doesn't mean that the pledges necessarily link individuals to government, but that is... continue reading on 14th July 2006 Comments (1)
- 311 There's a lot of talk of the single non-emergency line number. Introduced by Michael Bloomberg in New York in the form of 311, Demos is now recommending that the government of New Zealand try it out. With a population that's less than London's it may just work. Our own government here in the UK is also exploring the idea of a single phone line for non-emergencies. First mooted in Transformational Government in 2005, it is now being considered as part of the channel review that was announced in... continue reading 14th July 2006 Comments (2)
- GIS systems May be old news, but worth remembering the significance of GIS systems. Be great to know who in the UK has got furthest with this kit. continue reading 14th July 2006
- Recyclebank I’ve just come across what looks like a brilliant recycling scheme in the US. It’s called RecycleBank and it works like this:1. Each house gets a recycling container with a barcode on it, that allows the recycling truck to identify what your household in recycling 2. The amount your home recycles is translated into RecycleBank Dollars (paid for by the council through the savings they make on landfill sites) 3. You can spend your RecycleBank dollars at any of the 100 participating... continue reading on 10th July 2006 Comments (1)
- Web 2.0 and democracy 'Web 2.0' isn't just about citizen media. Is it a new way for companies to sell to consumers? An opportunity for consumers to take control of the corporate communications channel? A metaphor for a new kind of democratic social interaction? A tool that allows well-networked elites to increase their networking capabilities? All of the above?We're hosting an event with a visiting US social software consultant Elizabeth Albrycht, Livio Hughes from Headshift and Tom Steinberg from mySociety. Come... continue reading on 26th April 2006
- Minding the gap We call it everyday democracy - minding the gap between people and the institutions designed to deliver public services. I'm finding more examples of practioners in a variety of fields turning to social software tools - in the process they are re-inventing individuals' choices and re-framing the ways each of us involve ourselves in social outcomes.Patientopinion.org is making the space for a constructive conversation about the provision of health services that doesn't happen within the current... continue reading on 16th February 2006
- Gadgets for doing good? In November, Fast Company noted that CNN is airing a documentary about North korea with the footage and information gathered from dissidents using video cameras and mobile phones."With new technological wonders every month, it is easy to get caught up in Apple's newest iPod or Microsoft's new Xbox 360 or the next Motorola RAZR. It is more difficult to remember transformative technologies that do more than provide entertainment--they change lives."If it's possible to do this under Kim Jong Il's... continue reading on 23rd January 2006
- The wonderful Wired Wired Magazine is firing on all cylinders this month with a load of interesting articles. My favourites are James Surowiecki's article The Decline of Brands which charts the rise and fall of brands as indicators of business success (as he finishes the article "The aristocracy of brand is dead. Long live the meritocracy of product.") and Steven Johnson's piece about the implications of the 311 service in New York. On his blog, Steven says he thinks 311 is one of the two most sigificant... continue reading on 23rd November 2004 Comments (1)