The purpose of this document is to provide a brief overview of open consultation approaches in the current, international setting and propose a role for Information Technologies (IT) as a disruptive force in this setting.
The Finnish e-participation environment - IIEP IJW2011Teemu Ropponen
The Finnish e-participation environment - presentation at Immigrant Intergration by e-participation International Joint Workshop 2011, Helsinki, Nov 2-3
The paper aims at exploring the consequences of the gradually increasing availability of Open Data for evaluation as we know it. Using concepts from the literature on evaluation and democracy, it contends that new technologies both require a new behavior by evaluators and open up possibilities in the very framework in which evaluation is done.
The pressure to open up data changes the way governments and public sector offices conceptualize, produce, and disseminate data. Responding to this demand requires that internal procedures change in fundamental, still partially unexplored ways.
Issues arise also for citizens seeking information. They face a rapid growth of internet-based sources, which both creates opportunities for research and difficulties in assessing data quality, credibility, and usability.
It also implies that public interventions--be they programmes, projects, or services--are open to public scrutiny of a new, more informed type. It increasingly involves expert, non-expert, and differently-expert scrutiny.
It is highly unlikely that Open Data will ever provide all--or even most--information needed for an evaluation. There is a risk that, in addition to opening up new research avenues and framing new evaluation questions by new actors, the availability of great masses of data on public policies obscures the need to directly observe effects and to build credible theories about phenomena.
The very existence of open data, and the possibilities they open up to public scrutiny call into question the role of internal and external evaluators. This is even more so when thinking of the opportunities opened by the ability to conjure collective intelligence in evaluation processes--using concepts already developed in the participation tradition.
The paper explores these themes based on an on-going research project. The two authors are involved in the Open Data movement in Italy and will advance their research during the next months through their work, research on existing literature, and holding workshops (e.g. within the Sapienza Seminar on Classic Evaluation Theorists).
10th EES Biennial Conference
Development as Freedom in a Digital Age Soren Gigler
Under what conditions can new technologies enhance the well-being of poor communities? The study designs an alternative evaluation framework (AEF) that applies Amartya Sen’s capability approach to the study of information and communications technologies (ICTs) in order to place people’s well-being, rather than technology, at the center of the study. The AEF develops an impact chain that examines the mechanisms by which access to, and meaningful use of, ICTs can enhance people’s “informational capabilities” and improve people’s human and social capabilities. This approach thus uses people’s individual and collective capabilities, rather than measures of access or use, as its principal evaluative space. Based on empirical evidence from indigenous communities’ use of new technologies in rural Bolivia, the study concludes that enhancing poor people’s informational capabilities is the most critical factor determining the impact of ICTs on their well-being. Improved informational capabilities, like literacy, do enhance the human capabilities of poor and marginalized peoples to make strategic life choices and achieve the lifestyle they value. Evaluating the impact of ICTs in terms of capabilities thus reveals no direct relationship between improved access to, and use of, ICTs and enhanced well-being; ICTs lead to improvements in people’s lives only when informational capabilities are transformed into expanded human and social capabilities in the economic, political, social, organizational, and cultural dimensions of their lives. The study concludes that intermediaries are bound to play a central, even fundamental, role in this process. They help poor communities to enact and appropriate ICTs to their local socio-cultural context so that their use becomes meaningful for people’s daily lives, enhances their informational capabilities, and ultimately improves their human and social capabilities.
This document summarizes the kick-off meeting for a project bringing together academics and stakeholders to assess evidence and have a deliberative dialogue on issues relating to media, public action, and policy. The project will examine topics like civic engagement, political communication, and digital literacies. It discusses models for relating research to policy and challenges in bridging the gaps between academic and policy spheres. Breakout groups discussed potential issues and research to focus on, such as universal broadband, public service broadcasting, and media deregulation. The document concludes with remarks on the importance of having a manageable agenda and making academic knowledge available to non-academic audiences.
Policy Brief : Co-creation as a way to facilitate user-centricity and take-up...Mobile Age Project
Mobile Age project: https://www.mobile-age.eu/
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 693319.
This material reflects only the author's view and the Research Executive Agency (REA) is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.
From the ideal to the real: Top 20 lessons learned from scaling up innovation...Soren Gigler
Top 20 lessons learned on scaling up innovations from the Open Data Initiative at the World Bank. The Open Data Initiative has transformed the way the World Bank shares and publishes its data enabling users to have free, open and easy access to data instead of a previously mostly proprietary data policy.
How did such a radical change come about? How was it possible that our early very modest endeavors to implement innovations in governance could be scaled up and be replicated across so many different areas at the Bank? How could a vibrant community of innovators from within and outside the Bank come together share experiences, learn from each other and, most important, help to make an important institutional change -- launch an Open Data initiative and empower citizens to provide direct feedback on development programs?
Enhancing transparency and accountability mechanisms that directly empower citizens to better participate in decision-making processes of government and international donors is an imperative to achieving better and more sustainable development results on the ground. This paper analyzes the emerging Open Development Paradigm and investigates to what extent such a new approach towards citizen-centered development can make development programs more effective, responsive and inclusive. It provides concrete case studies of open governance programs that enhance the transparency and accountability of development agencies and foster the collaboration among all development actors in order to achieve better development outcomes and enhance the well-being of the poor.
This document discusses the challenges of e-governance and participation in the context of social media. It notes that social media and Web 2.0 technologies are spurring new forms of participation through citizen engagement and the creation of social networks. However, both citizens and governments face challenges in leveraging these technologies, such as empowering citizens, ensuring transparency, and managing new forms of collaboration and knowledge sharing.
The Finnish e-participation environment - IIEP IJW2011Teemu Ropponen
The Finnish e-participation environment - presentation at Immigrant Intergration by e-participation International Joint Workshop 2011, Helsinki, Nov 2-3
The paper aims at exploring the consequences of the gradually increasing availability of Open Data for evaluation as we know it. Using concepts from the literature on evaluation and democracy, it contends that new technologies both require a new behavior by evaluators and open up possibilities in the very framework in which evaluation is done.
The pressure to open up data changes the way governments and public sector offices conceptualize, produce, and disseminate data. Responding to this demand requires that internal procedures change in fundamental, still partially unexplored ways.
Issues arise also for citizens seeking information. They face a rapid growth of internet-based sources, which both creates opportunities for research and difficulties in assessing data quality, credibility, and usability.
It also implies that public interventions--be they programmes, projects, or services--are open to public scrutiny of a new, more informed type. It increasingly involves expert, non-expert, and differently-expert scrutiny.
It is highly unlikely that Open Data will ever provide all--or even most--information needed for an evaluation. There is a risk that, in addition to opening up new research avenues and framing new evaluation questions by new actors, the availability of great masses of data on public policies obscures the need to directly observe effects and to build credible theories about phenomena.
The very existence of open data, and the possibilities they open up to public scrutiny call into question the role of internal and external evaluators. This is even more so when thinking of the opportunities opened by the ability to conjure collective intelligence in evaluation processes--using concepts already developed in the participation tradition.
The paper explores these themes based on an on-going research project. The two authors are involved in the Open Data movement in Italy and will advance their research during the next months through their work, research on existing literature, and holding workshops (e.g. within the Sapienza Seminar on Classic Evaluation Theorists).
10th EES Biennial Conference
Development as Freedom in a Digital Age Soren Gigler
Under what conditions can new technologies enhance the well-being of poor communities? The study designs an alternative evaluation framework (AEF) that applies Amartya Sen’s capability approach to the study of information and communications technologies (ICTs) in order to place people’s well-being, rather than technology, at the center of the study. The AEF develops an impact chain that examines the mechanisms by which access to, and meaningful use of, ICTs can enhance people’s “informational capabilities” and improve people’s human and social capabilities. This approach thus uses people’s individual and collective capabilities, rather than measures of access or use, as its principal evaluative space. Based on empirical evidence from indigenous communities’ use of new technologies in rural Bolivia, the study concludes that enhancing poor people’s informational capabilities is the most critical factor determining the impact of ICTs on their well-being. Improved informational capabilities, like literacy, do enhance the human capabilities of poor and marginalized peoples to make strategic life choices and achieve the lifestyle they value. Evaluating the impact of ICTs in terms of capabilities thus reveals no direct relationship between improved access to, and use of, ICTs and enhanced well-being; ICTs lead to improvements in people’s lives only when informational capabilities are transformed into expanded human and social capabilities in the economic, political, social, organizational, and cultural dimensions of their lives. The study concludes that intermediaries are bound to play a central, even fundamental, role in this process. They help poor communities to enact and appropriate ICTs to their local socio-cultural context so that their use becomes meaningful for people’s daily lives, enhances their informational capabilities, and ultimately improves their human and social capabilities.
This document summarizes the kick-off meeting for a project bringing together academics and stakeholders to assess evidence and have a deliberative dialogue on issues relating to media, public action, and policy. The project will examine topics like civic engagement, political communication, and digital literacies. It discusses models for relating research to policy and challenges in bridging the gaps between academic and policy spheres. Breakout groups discussed potential issues and research to focus on, such as universal broadband, public service broadcasting, and media deregulation. The document concludes with remarks on the importance of having a manageable agenda and making academic knowledge available to non-academic audiences.
Policy Brief : Co-creation as a way to facilitate user-centricity and take-up...Mobile Age Project
Mobile Age project: https://www.mobile-age.eu/
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 693319.
This material reflects only the author's view and the Research Executive Agency (REA) is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.
From the ideal to the real: Top 20 lessons learned from scaling up innovation...Soren Gigler
Top 20 lessons learned on scaling up innovations from the Open Data Initiative at the World Bank. The Open Data Initiative has transformed the way the World Bank shares and publishes its data enabling users to have free, open and easy access to data instead of a previously mostly proprietary data policy.
How did such a radical change come about? How was it possible that our early very modest endeavors to implement innovations in governance could be scaled up and be replicated across so many different areas at the Bank? How could a vibrant community of innovators from within and outside the Bank come together share experiences, learn from each other and, most important, help to make an important institutional change -- launch an Open Data initiative and empower citizens to provide direct feedback on development programs?
Enhancing transparency and accountability mechanisms that directly empower citizens to better participate in decision-making processes of government and international donors is an imperative to achieving better and more sustainable development results on the ground. This paper analyzes the emerging Open Development Paradigm and investigates to what extent such a new approach towards citizen-centered development can make development programs more effective, responsive and inclusive. It provides concrete case studies of open governance programs that enhance the transparency and accountability of development agencies and foster the collaboration among all development actors in order to achieve better development outcomes and enhance the well-being of the poor.
This document discusses the challenges of e-governance and participation in the context of social media. It notes that social media and Web 2.0 technologies are spurring new forms of participation through citizen engagement and the creation of social networks. However, both citizens and governments face challenges in leveraging these technologies, such as empowering citizens, ensuring transparency, and managing new forms of collaboration and knowledge sharing.
Literature review on the impact of public access to information and communica...Dr Lendy Spires
This document summarizes a literature review of research on the impacts of public access to information and communication technologies. The review found limited conclusive evidence on the downstream impacts of public access to ICTs. Some studies found impacts in areas like skill development and job creation, while others found limited impacts. More research is needed that quantifies impacts across different contexts using consistent methodologies.
This document discusses online civic engagement and deliberation platforms. It provides examples of online platforms used by various cities and counties for public participation in areas like planning, budgeting, and policymaking. It also discusses challenges of online deliberation like moderating discussions and ensuring diverse participation. Frameworks for evaluating public participation processes and platforms using criteria like information sharing, consultation, collaboration and decision-making power are presented.
This document summarizes a research paper on applying a human rights framework to online disinformation and political discourse. The paper examines how online campaign techniques like disinformation, exploiting social media algorithms, and microtargeting based on personal data are distorting democratic processes. It argues that international human rights law provides a framework to balance responses to these issues with protections for civil liberties. The paper analyzes how rights to privacy, expression, and participation in public affairs relate to state and platform regulation of online political content and personal data use. It recommends changes like ensuring user consent for data use, more transparency around content policies and targeting, and considering users' rights to privacy and autonomy in platform designs.
This document discusses optimizing government through data-driven citizen engagement. It discusses how citizen expectations for engagement have increased and governments need to improve to match private sector standards. Effective citizen engagement involves understanding citizens' needs and using data to personalize communications and services. The document outlines four stages of citizen engagement, from informing to collaborating. It argues governments need to use data to integrate citizen views, analyze internal/external processes, learn best practices, and keep efforts simple. Data-driven engagement involves understanding citizens, analyzing preferences, optimizing communications, and delivering personalized services.
Role of Civil Society - Internet governance and developing countriesKutoma Wakunuma
This document summarizes a research paper on the role of civil society in Internet governance and its impact during the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). It discusses the objectives and methodology of the research. The key findings are that civil society played an important role in WSIS through various caucuses and working groups, and helped advocate for issues like human rights, freedom of expression, and open source software. While civil society's participation highlighted digital inequalities, it also faced challenges in ensuring developing country issues were adequately reflected in WSIS outcomes. The research aims to analyze civil society's influence on developing countries regarding Internet governance.
The document discusses leveraging technology for community consultation and engagement. It provides an example of how the City of Kingston used technology throughout their LivingKingston2035 consultation process to create broader awareness, increase participation, and manage and derive value from the large amount of data collected. Over 6,000 community members participated, providing over 13,500 ideas. Technology allowed effective sorting and analysis of this data to inform decision making. Lessons from this case study emphasize planning technology use, making data central, and preparing for open data initiatives.
Reprogramming power through crowdsourcing Heikka Draft Oxford 26.9.2014TaneliHeikka
This document summarizes research into whether crowdsourcing is changing democracy in Finland. The research found that crowdsourcing is producing a new kind of democracy that contrasts with traditional models. A new type of engaged citizen wants results quickly using digital tools and participatory processes, rather than waiting for bureaucratic institutions. However, others see risks in crowdsourcing's faster approach and value democratic stability through existing institutions. The study analyzed interviews with key players to identify positions of either "democratic disruption" or "democratic stability" and concluded that crowdsourcing both complements and puts pressure on representative democracy.
Innovation Accelerators:
Defining Characteristics Among Startup Assistance Organizations by C. Scott Dempwolf, Jennifer Auer, and
Michelle D’Ippolito
Optimal Solutions Group, LLC
College Park, MD 20740
contract number SBAHQ -13-M-0197
Release Date: October 2014
This report was developed under a contract with the Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy, and contains information and analysis that were reviewed by officials of the Office of Advocacy. However, the final conclusions of the report do not necessarily reflect the views of the Office of Advocacy.
This document summarizes discussions from over 500 individuals representing more than 100 organizations on implementing the Principles for Digital Development.
The principles aim to improve the success of digital development projects by providing best practices. However, integrating the principles can be challenging.
Recommendations include having a vision and strategy to support digital development best practices. Donors should align procurement to enable principles and build a shared digital resource pool. Implementers should contribute to open resources and adapt processes to apply principles. The goal is to learn from past challenges and make digital tools more sustainable and beneficial.
Comparative analysis of REDD+ benefit sharing mechanisms for Efficiency, Effe...CIFOR-ICRAF
The document summarizes a comparative analysis of benefit sharing mechanisms (BSMs) for REDD+ programs in 13 countries. It finds that few countries have clear national REDD+ programs regulating finance distribution. BSMs tend to build on existing models with minimal cross-sector interaction. Key enabling factors for effective, efficient and equitable BSMs are often lacking. Discourses on BSMs focus on effectiveness vs. equity, and who has the right to benefits - those reducing emissions or those facing costs. A legitimate decision-making process is needed to negotiate these choices.
The document provides background on the challenging socioeconomic context in Philadelphia at the time the Freedom Rings Partnership launched its programs. It describes high poverty rates, low educational attainment, and lagging broadband adoption compared to national averages. The Partnership aimed to address these issues by expanding computer and internet access and training to vulnerable populations through its KEYSPOT program, with the goal of improving digital literacy, workforce development, and community engagement.
This document summarizes four recent public inquiries into media policy in Australia that have reignited debates around how to regulate media in a convergent environment. The inquiries covered the convergence review, the ALRC classification review, the Finkelstein media inquiry, and a review of the Australia Council. The document outlines some of the key recommendations and principles from these reviews, including a shift to platform-neutral and content-based regulation. It also discusses debates around how to approach regulation in a globalized digital environment and the roles of both government and industry in media governance.
This document summarizes the use of the internet by Indonesian NGOs to develop participatory democracy. It finds that while NGOs use the internet for communication and collaboration internally, their use externally to foster public participation varies. Community-based organizations like CRI most effectively develop participatory democracy by optimizing how the internet enables information sharing, interaction, participation and decentralization. However, constraints like resources and skills still limit Indonesian NGOs' ability to fully leverage the internet's potential for participatory democracy.
Online Disability Activism - University of Leicester, Mar 2011filippotrevisan
1. The document discusses research on how disabled people use the internet for political participation and discusses barriers they face both online and offline.
2. A case study of Scottish disability organizations' websites found little user-generated content and personal stories were not directly posted by users.
3. A campaign called "Barred!" allowed some user input and stories to inform the campaign's platform, but organizations ultimately controlled online communications.
Urban Topic- Cycpercities and china's censorshipNicole Muth
The document summarizes China's censorship of the internet and how it affects social activism and democracy in the country. It discusses how social activists now use modern technologies like social media to organize and spread information faster. While this has helped activism, it has also complicated matters for China, which is not a democracy and strictly censors the internet. The censorship aims to prevent foreign democratic ideas from inspiring calls for political change among Chinese citizens. As internet use grew in China, so did government restrictions on content and service providers to maintain control over the flow of information and activism online.
The document discusses crowdsourcing and its use in policymaking. It provides definitions of crowdsourcing and outlines several common applications, including crowdmapping, innovation processes, creative work, journalism, microwork, and crowdfunding. It then examines in more detail how crowdsourcing has been used for democratic processes like law and strategy processes, participatory budgeting, and citizen petition sites. The document aims to serve as both an academic overview and a handbook for using crowdsourcing in policymaking.
Including the Excluded Can ICTs empower poor communities? Towards an alternat...Soren Gigler
nder which conditions can information and communications technologies (ICTs) empower poor communities? This paper investigates this question, focusing on the role of information and communications technologies in promoting indigenous people's development in Latin America. First, the paper analyzes key factors under which information and knowledge can be instrumental and substantive for the empowerment of marginalized groups. Hereby, we argue that improved access to information and ICT skills, similar to the enhancement of a person's writing and reading skills, can enhance poor peoples' capabilities to make strategic life choices and to achieve the lifestyle they value. Furthermore, the paper develops an alternative evaluation framework for ICT interventions based on Sen's capability approach. This framework places, in contrast to the current discourse around the "digital divide", the human development of the poor and not technology at the center of the analysis. The paper concludes that there does not exist a direct and causal relationship between ICTs and empowerment, but that in fact this relationship is being shaped by a dynamic, multi-dimensional interrelationship between technology and the social context.
The document discusses governmental control of the internet in authoritarian states. It summarizes that while the internet is seen as promoting globalization and free speech, authoritarian governments implement controls within their borders through technical filtering of content, shutting down of servers, and restrictive laws. The main goals of state intervention are to restrict published opinions and limit active participation in political discussions, while allowing more open discussion of economic and cultural issues. While complete control of the global internet is not possible, national borders allow successful regulation of internet activities.
National e-participation environment presentation by Niklas Wilhelmsson, Ministry of Justice, Finland - Unit for Democracy, Language Affairs and Fundamental Rights. Steven Clit's slides from the same event here: https://db.tt/BOhhQ0Ex
The document discusses several case studies of participatory policy-making initiatives:
1) Regulations.gov - A US government portal that allows public commenting on proposed rules. It has improved access and participation in the rulemaking process.
2) A partnership between community colleges and regional planning agencies that engaged "hard to reach" groups in transportation planning through student facilitators. This reduced costs while making participation more inclusive.
3) The Citizens' Initiative Review in Oregon, where citizen panels review ballot measures and provide impartial summaries to voters. Research found it was an effective way to inform voters.
Literature review on the impact of public access to information and communica...Dr Lendy Spires
This document summarizes a literature review of research on the impacts of public access to information and communication technologies. The review found limited conclusive evidence on the downstream impacts of public access to ICTs. Some studies found impacts in areas like skill development and job creation, while others found limited impacts. More research is needed that quantifies impacts across different contexts using consistent methodologies.
This document discusses online civic engagement and deliberation platforms. It provides examples of online platforms used by various cities and counties for public participation in areas like planning, budgeting, and policymaking. It also discusses challenges of online deliberation like moderating discussions and ensuring diverse participation. Frameworks for evaluating public participation processes and platforms using criteria like information sharing, consultation, collaboration and decision-making power are presented.
This document summarizes a research paper on applying a human rights framework to online disinformation and political discourse. The paper examines how online campaign techniques like disinformation, exploiting social media algorithms, and microtargeting based on personal data are distorting democratic processes. It argues that international human rights law provides a framework to balance responses to these issues with protections for civil liberties. The paper analyzes how rights to privacy, expression, and participation in public affairs relate to state and platform regulation of online political content and personal data use. It recommends changes like ensuring user consent for data use, more transparency around content policies and targeting, and considering users' rights to privacy and autonomy in platform designs.
This document discusses optimizing government through data-driven citizen engagement. It discusses how citizen expectations for engagement have increased and governments need to improve to match private sector standards. Effective citizen engagement involves understanding citizens' needs and using data to personalize communications and services. The document outlines four stages of citizen engagement, from informing to collaborating. It argues governments need to use data to integrate citizen views, analyze internal/external processes, learn best practices, and keep efforts simple. Data-driven engagement involves understanding citizens, analyzing preferences, optimizing communications, and delivering personalized services.
Role of Civil Society - Internet governance and developing countriesKutoma Wakunuma
This document summarizes a research paper on the role of civil society in Internet governance and its impact during the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). It discusses the objectives and methodology of the research. The key findings are that civil society played an important role in WSIS through various caucuses and working groups, and helped advocate for issues like human rights, freedom of expression, and open source software. While civil society's participation highlighted digital inequalities, it also faced challenges in ensuring developing country issues were adequately reflected in WSIS outcomes. The research aims to analyze civil society's influence on developing countries regarding Internet governance.
The document discusses leveraging technology for community consultation and engagement. It provides an example of how the City of Kingston used technology throughout their LivingKingston2035 consultation process to create broader awareness, increase participation, and manage and derive value from the large amount of data collected. Over 6,000 community members participated, providing over 13,500 ideas. Technology allowed effective sorting and analysis of this data to inform decision making. Lessons from this case study emphasize planning technology use, making data central, and preparing for open data initiatives.
Reprogramming power through crowdsourcing Heikka Draft Oxford 26.9.2014TaneliHeikka
This document summarizes research into whether crowdsourcing is changing democracy in Finland. The research found that crowdsourcing is producing a new kind of democracy that contrasts with traditional models. A new type of engaged citizen wants results quickly using digital tools and participatory processes, rather than waiting for bureaucratic institutions. However, others see risks in crowdsourcing's faster approach and value democratic stability through existing institutions. The study analyzed interviews with key players to identify positions of either "democratic disruption" or "democratic stability" and concluded that crowdsourcing both complements and puts pressure on representative democracy.
Innovation Accelerators:
Defining Characteristics Among Startup Assistance Organizations by C. Scott Dempwolf, Jennifer Auer, and
Michelle D’Ippolito
Optimal Solutions Group, LLC
College Park, MD 20740
contract number SBAHQ -13-M-0197
Release Date: October 2014
This report was developed under a contract with the Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy, and contains information and analysis that were reviewed by officials of the Office of Advocacy. However, the final conclusions of the report do not necessarily reflect the views of the Office of Advocacy.
This document summarizes discussions from over 500 individuals representing more than 100 organizations on implementing the Principles for Digital Development.
The principles aim to improve the success of digital development projects by providing best practices. However, integrating the principles can be challenging.
Recommendations include having a vision and strategy to support digital development best practices. Donors should align procurement to enable principles and build a shared digital resource pool. Implementers should contribute to open resources and adapt processes to apply principles. The goal is to learn from past challenges and make digital tools more sustainable and beneficial.
Comparative analysis of REDD+ benefit sharing mechanisms for Efficiency, Effe...CIFOR-ICRAF
The document summarizes a comparative analysis of benefit sharing mechanisms (BSMs) for REDD+ programs in 13 countries. It finds that few countries have clear national REDD+ programs regulating finance distribution. BSMs tend to build on existing models with minimal cross-sector interaction. Key enabling factors for effective, efficient and equitable BSMs are often lacking. Discourses on BSMs focus on effectiveness vs. equity, and who has the right to benefits - those reducing emissions or those facing costs. A legitimate decision-making process is needed to negotiate these choices.
The document provides background on the challenging socioeconomic context in Philadelphia at the time the Freedom Rings Partnership launched its programs. It describes high poverty rates, low educational attainment, and lagging broadband adoption compared to national averages. The Partnership aimed to address these issues by expanding computer and internet access and training to vulnerable populations through its KEYSPOT program, with the goal of improving digital literacy, workforce development, and community engagement.
This document summarizes four recent public inquiries into media policy in Australia that have reignited debates around how to regulate media in a convergent environment. The inquiries covered the convergence review, the ALRC classification review, the Finkelstein media inquiry, and a review of the Australia Council. The document outlines some of the key recommendations and principles from these reviews, including a shift to platform-neutral and content-based regulation. It also discusses debates around how to approach regulation in a globalized digital environment and the roles of both government and industry in media governance.
This document summarizes the use of the internet by Indonesian NGOs to develop participatory democracy. It finds that while NGOs use the internet for communication and collaboration internally, their use externally to foster public participation varies. Community-based organizations like CRI most effectively develop participatory democracy by optimizing how the internet enables information sharing, interaction, participation and decentralization. However, constraints like resources and skills still limit Indonesian NGOs' ability to fully leverage the internet's potential for participatory democracy.
Online Disability Activism - University of Leicester, Mar 2011filippotrevisan
1. The document discusses research on how disabled people use the internet for political participation and discusses barriers they face both online and offline.
2. A case study of Scottish disability organizations' websites found little user-generated content and personal stories were not directly posted by users.
3. A campaign called "Barred!" allowed some user input and stories to inform the campaign's platform, but organizations ultimately controlled online communications.
Urban Topic- Cycpercities and china's censorshipNicole Muth
The document summarizes China's censorship of the internet and how it affects social activism and democracy in the country. It discusses how social activists now use modern technologies like social media to organize and spread information faster. While this has helped activism, it has also complicated matters for China, which is not a democracy and strictly censors the internet. The censorship aims to prevent foreign democratic ideas from inspiring calls for political change among Chinese citizens. As internet use grew in China, so did government restrictions on content and service providers to maintain control over the flow of information and activism online.
The document discusses crowdsourcing and its use in policymaking. It provides definitions of crowdsourcing and outlines several common applications, including crowdmapping, innovation processes, creative work, journalism, microwork, and crowdfunding. It then examines in more detail how crowdsourcing has been used for democratic processes like law and strategy processes, participatory budgeting, and citizen petition sites. The document aims to serve as both an academic overview and a handbook for using crowdsourcing in policymaking.
Including the Excluded Can ICTs empower poor communities? Towards an alternat...Soren Gigler
nder which conditions can information and communications technologies (ICTs) empower poor communities? This paper investigates this question, focusing on the role of information and communications technologies in promoting indigenous people's development in Latin America. First, the paper analyzes key factors under which information and knowledge can be instrumental and substantive for the empowerment of marginalized groups. Hereby, we argue that improved access to information and ICT skills, similar to the enhancement of a person's writing and reading skills, can enhance poor peoples' capabilities to make strategic life choices and to achieve the lifestyle they value. Furthermore, the paper develops an alternative evaluation framework for ICT interventions based on Sen's capability approach. This framework places, in contrast to the current discourse around the "digital divide", the human development of the poor and not technology at the center of the analysis. The paper concludes that there does not exist a direct and causal relationship between ICTs and empowerment, but that in fact this relationship is being shaped by a dynamic, multi-dimensional interrelationship between technology and the social context.
The document discusses governmental control of the internet in authoritarian states. It summarizes that while the internet is seen as promoting globalization and free speech, authoritarian governments implement controls within their borders through technical filtering of content, shutting down of servers, and restrictive laws. The main goals of state intervention are to restrict published opinions and limit active participation in political discussions, while allowing more open discussion of economic and cultural issues. While complete control of the global internet is not possible, national borders allow successful regulation of internet activities.
National e-participation environment presentation by Niklas Wilhelmsson, Ministry of Justice, Finland - Unit for Democracy, Language Affairs and Fundamental Rights. Steven Clit's slides from the same event here: https://db.tt/BOhhQ0Ex
The document discusses several case studies of participatory policy-making initiatives:
1) Regulations.gov - A US government portal that allows public commenting on proposed rules. It has improved access and participation in the rulemaking process.
2) A partnership between community colleges and regional planning agencies that engaged "hard to reach" groups in transportation planning through student facilitators. This reduced costs while making participation more inclusive.
3) The Citizens' Initiative Review in Oregon, where citizen panels review ballot measures and provide impartial summaries to voters. Research found it was an effective way to inform voters.
E-consultations: New tools for civic engagement or facades for political corr...ePractice.eu
E-consultations are emerging as a popular tool for civic engagement in policymaking. While they provide new opportunities for interaction between citizens and political actors, their actual impact on policy outcomes is less clear. Existing evidence suggests that citizen inputs from e-consultations are often arbitrarily integrated into policies and their inclusion depends on political will. This raises the question of whether e-consultations meaningfully engage citizens or merely serve as facades of political correctness in the online space.
This paper examines difficulties faced by government projects aimed at fostering citizens' political participation online. It analyzes tools on the Brazilian Presidency and House of Representatives websites, finding they employ digital tools differently. The Presidency site focuses on providing information, while participation tools encourage little involvement in public policy. The paper explores how constraints of e-participation like access, information quality, and commercial bias influence these initiatives. It argues participation requires more than online resources, as civic culture and willingness are key to political engagement.
Towards a sustainable e-Participation implementation model ePractice.eu
Author: M. Sirajul Islam.
This paper proposes a framework for an effective e-Participation model that can be suitable under certain socio-economic settings and applicable to any country. Most of such previous initiatives were experimental in nature and lacked in both public awareness and clearly defined expected outcomes.
Summary presentation: Preventing corruption:A Toolkit for Parliamentarians (Draft – developed with GOPAC, the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption), Oslo, 2 February 2010 Marie Laberge, UNDP Oslo Governance Centre
Presentation ICEGOV 2013 - Artur Afonso SousaArtur de Sousa
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EVALUATING CITIZENS' PERCEPTIONS AND ATTITUDES TOWARDS E-VOTING IN LOCAL GOVE...ijmpict
The implementation of Electronic Voting (eVoting) at the local level presents numerous advantages. It
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affect their local communities. Furthermore, eVoting systems promote inclusivity and equality among the
citizenry. Moreover, the adoption of eVoting can enhance transparency and subsequently bolster citizens'
trust in their government. However, it is essential to underscore that the successful implementation of
eVoting is a notably intricate endeavor. The primary objective of this paper is to investigate citizens'
perceptions and attitudes regarding the implementation of eVoting in municipal elections. This research
aims to ascertain the feasibility of introducing eVoting in municipal elections and to identify the key factors
contributing to its successful implementation. To accomplish this, the findings of a study conducted
between May and July of 2023, which involved the participation of residents of the Municipality of
Thessaloniki are presented and analyzed. According to the findings, the eVoting paradigm, if all the
necessary measures are taken and all the necessary conditions for its proper implementation are met, is an
important and useful tool, which can promote e-Democracy and consequently democracy in local
communities.
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1. White Paper
Brief overview of current practices
for open consultation
Vassilis Giannakopoulos(1)
, George Giannakopoulos(1,2)
1
SciFY PNPC and 2
NCSR “Demokritos”
A SciFYWhite Paper on eDemocracy
1.Introduction
The purpose of this document is to provide a brief overview of open consultation
approaches in the current, international setting and propose a role for Information
Technologies (IT) as a disruptive force in this setting. The document is structured as
follows. We describe the motivation behind this work in Section 1.1; we identify trends
and challenges in Section 1.2. Then, we look deeper into the first stages of public
consultation in Section 2, referring to current practices across the globe. We conclude
the text with a summary of the findings and proposed next steps in Section 3.
1.1 Motivation and scope
The public consultation process in Greece faces many issues: research showed that
although people find it very valuable, trust towards the process is low and citizen
participation has been declining. OGP commitments to strengthen the public
consultations were clear, and progress has been made but technical progress in the
implementation has been slow.
SciFY has worked towards facing the above challenges through e-democracy tools. In
order to best understand the international scenery and adapt our approach, we
conducted a study of current open consultation practices, which we share in this
document, as part of our open knowledge dissemination action.
The results of this study empowered the creation of a innovative, even disruptive, tool:
DemocracIT. DemocracIT, is an innovative public consultations platform that allows
policymakers engage with citizens at the final stage of the consultation process in an
effective way. It provides a rich annotation and discussion environment, coupled with
powerful reporting mechanisms exploiting data mining methods. It includes
cross-consultation statistics and analysis to quantify the way organizations follow (or do
not follow) best practices regarding open consultation. The platform is developed as an
open source project to maximize reuse and sustainability of the project.
Brief overview of current practices for open consultation by Vassilis Giannakopoulos, George Giannakopoulos
is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
2. With DemocracIT we respond to the need for more transparency, higher citizen
participation and clearer impact measurement. Its open source approach maximizes
reuse potential and, thus, may empower communities beyond the traditional law-making
ones, including possibly cross-country policy making organizations and settings. The
open source approach allows for adaptability, customization, and therefore
international use.
1.2 Trends and Challenges
Citizen engagement in the decision-making process has significantly increased during
the last two decades [1]. A number of reasons can explain this trend: the complexity of
the issues to be solved, the knowledge citizens and citizen groups possess around a
problem, the need for acceptance of the policies to be implemented. But it is emerging
ICT technologies, Internet usage and web 2.0 tools that are the technical enablers, since
they have made wider citizen participation easier. Yet, our research around practices and
tools used for public consultation, a function that permeates all the stages of the policy
making cycle, shows that a number of challenges still need to be addressed:
– Inadequate use of ICT technologies. Public consultation practices require that
policymakers deal with large amounts of textual input. Although ICT technologies (e.g.
text mining, sentiment analysis) exist, they are not exploited to allow for an effective
analysis of the available citizen feedback, making the work of the policymakers more
difficult.
– Public consultation of the final draft laws is a real need, yet the approach is
inadequate: at this stage, the only way citizens can leave their comments is through
e-mails and forms. This approach is ineffective in many ways: it does not allow
discussion, interaction and mutual understanding, nor does it encourage participation.
– Lack of an evaluation mechanism for the consultation process: There is no way for
the citizens to check what their contributions were, and if and how they got into
consideration or incorporated in the final text of the law. This increases the lack of trust
of the public on the outcome of e-participation processes [2, 3].
2. Public Consultation at the first stages of the
policymaking process
E-democracy is divided into three sub-fields: “information provision, deliberation, and
participation in decision-making” [1]. Civic engagement includes three dimensions:
political knowledge of public affairs, political trust for the political system, and political
participation in influencing the government and the decision-making process [4]. The
Internet provides a new avenue to interact with governmental institutions [5]. In the
above context, different levels of government (e.g. municipalities, states, state unions)
in different continents have included ways to allow citizens and/or other players in the
Brief overview of current practices for open consultation by Vassilis Giannakopoulos, George Giannakopoulos
is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
3. field (e.g. political organizations, trade associations etc.) to get involved in the process
of policymaking.
The policymaking process includes different steps that could be broadly described as
follows:
– Issue identification / Agenda setting
– Policy formulation
– Decision making
– Implementation
– Evaluation
Yet, the above stages are indicative; the lawmaking process is usually iterative and more
systemic. Consultation can permeate the entire process, to maximally integrate
feedback and improve the resulting policies.
We looked into practices of different governmental structures regarding the first
three steps of the policymaking process. For these different stages, different
e-participation tools are being used.
2.1 Stage 1: Issue identification / Agenda setting
This stage includes problem identification and quantification. It includes the following
actions to allow participation:
Action Tools Examples
Problem identification /
quantification
● Blogging-like tools,
● “Post your story”,
● Discussion forums
1. Australian Government
2. UK government
2.2 Stage 2: Policy formulation
This stage usually includes the following actions to allow participation:
Action Common Tools Examples
Collecting ideas Various tools that allow
citizens to submit ideas
and vote on them
Australian Government
Getting feedback on
different suggested
policies / priorities
Structured questionnaires 1. European Union
2. Victoria, Australia
3. Canada
Budget allocation Specific web tools YouChoose (UK)
Brief overview of current practices for open consultation by Vassilis Giannakopoulos, George Giannakopoulos
is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
4. 2.3 Stage 3: Decision making
In this stage, citizens usually participate by giving feedback on the final draft law.
Action Tools Examples
Collecting feedback on the
final text of the draft law
e-mails 1. Business consultations
portal in Australia
2. UK Public Consultation
site
Forum-like tools that allow
for remarks
Greek OpenGov portal for
open consultations
Specific forms with general
remarks
(with personal info
needed)
USA public consultation
portal
There is a variety of tools and methods to gather feedback for the first stages of the
lawmaking process. For example, the NOMAD platform [6] allows a policy maker to
gather feedback from the Web and Social Media to improve a policy proposal. The
PADGETS system [7] supports policy makers by combining social media analysis and
simulation to provide feedback on policy making. However, as indicated above the use
of technology is very limited in the public consultation of the final text versions of the
draft law. Furthermore, in most cases the tools function as collectors of data and do not
always empower the citizen; they empower the policy maker.
Yet, the need for a system that enables citizens and lawmakers to interact efficiently
during the last stages of the lawmaking process is clear. For example, the Australian
Government states that automated tools and techniques for evaluating online
submissions are much needed, because some consultations receive a large volume of
submissions. For example, the 2009 National Human Rights Consultation , which
included an online element, received over 35,000 submissions. It suggests the “use of
text mining tools” and the “design the online submission mechanisms in such a way that
there is already some level of meaning attached to content at the point of submission,
for example by asking contributors to tag or categorise their submissions based on the
topic/s of the consultation”. The EU does not have a tool to address this stage of the
consultation.
Other consultation platforms
There exist tools used for choosing priorities, setting budgets, brainstorming ideas and
voting on them. Such solutions:
1. Allow commenting of small texts (ideas / challenges etc.)
Brief overview of current practices for open consultation by Vassilis Giannakopoulos, George Giannakopoulos
is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
5. 2. Work like forums, where participants can comment, and/or agree with other
people’s ideas
3. Integrate Social Media into polling (Answer questions and post answers to Social
Media)
Probably the most representative ones are:
CitizenSpace: It allows for online surveys, uploading of files from respondents, manually
entering answers received outside the public consultations (e.g. through mail or email)
EngagementHQ: Forum-like tool
It has to be noted though that these tools are not built to allow people to discuss on
specific texts, at a later/final step of a process, where the final text of the draft law is
open for consultation.
3. Conclusions
We consider that Information technology tools can significantly empower democratic
action and collaboration, but, based on the above study, they need to:
● remain user-oriented,
● be well-designed and efficient,
● be taking into account all the stakeholders and
● take advantage of advances in ICT.
In ancient Greece, “Ecclesia” had the final say on legislation, through direct participation
of the citizens. Now, the challenges of space and time, the number and motives of
participants have to be well-addressed. The new “Demos” needs new tools to function in
an inclusive and effective way, in order to strengthen Democracy and participation.
DemocracIT provides new tools that address these issues. Being open source and
modular, it allows for implementation in different countries and settings. It can be
combined with other tools to allow for the creation of new solutions that serve the
people.
Acknowledgements
DemocracIT was funded by Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway in terms of the program
«We Are All Citizens» , which is part of the Funding Mechanism of EEA for Greece, also
known as EEA Grants . Administrator of the subvention of the Program is Bodossaki
Foundation . Aim of the Program is the empowering of the society of the citizens in our
country and the aid of social justice, democracy and sustainable development.
Brief overview of current practices for open consultation by Vassilis Giannakopoulos, George Giannakopoulos
is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
6. References
[1] Somarakis, G., Stratigea, A.: Public involvement in taking legislative action as to the
spatial development of the tourist sector in greece: the opengov platform experience. Future
Internet 6(4), 735–759 (2014)
[2] Manoharan, A.: A study of the determinants of county egovernment in the united states.
The American Review of Public Administration 43(2), 159–178 (2013)
[3] Kim, S., Lee, J.: Eparticipation, transparency, and trust in local government. Public
Administration Review 72(6), 819–828 (2012)
[4] Pautz, H.: The internet, political participation and election turnout a case study of
Germany’s WWW. German Politics & Society 28(3), 156–175 (2010)
[5] Norris, P.: Digital divide: Civic engagement, information poverty, and the Internet
worldwide. Cambridge University Press (2001)
[6] Kiomourtzis, G., Giannakopoulos, G., Petasis, G., Karampiperis, P., Karkaletsis, V.:
Nomad: Linguistic resources and tools aimed at policy formulation and validation. In:
Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation
(LREC14) (2014)
[7] Boero, R., Ferro, E., Osella, M., Charalabidis, Y., Loukis, E.: Policy Intelligence in the Era
of Social Computing: Towards a Cross-Policy Decision Support System. In: Garca-Castro,
R., Fensel, D., Antoniou, G. (eds.) The Semantic Web: ESWC 2011 Workshops, pp.
217–228. No. 7117 in Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Springer Berlin Heidelberg
(Jan 2012), http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-642-25953-1_18
Brief overview of current practices for open consultation by Vassilis Giannakopoulos,
George Giannakopoulos is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike
4.0 International License.
Brief overview of current practices for open consultation by Vassilis Giannakopoulos, George Giannakopoulos
is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.