San Diego Mayor to crowdsource public policy

The mayor of San Diego is seeking public input on new policies for the city, beginning with budget suggestions on how the city can address the current economic crises.   The Mayor’s website states that “each of your suggestions will be reviewed carefully by my staff. They may also be forwarded to department directors and members of our financial management team.”

In addition to just soliciting policy recommendations, some of the suggestions will be posted online for “the goal of sharing ideas and elevating our civic dialogue.”  While posting the submissions online is certainly a step in the right direction for transparency, will the mayor’s efforts produce results?

So far, policy suggestions include ending car allowances for elected officials, reducing the number of firefighters per truck, and  legalizing marijuana.    Another suggestion calls for the city to “stop enforcing the booze ban”:

Stop enforcing the booze ban

I have lived in Mission Beach for two years, and since the ban on alcohol went into effect last year, I have watched numerous policemen heckle beach-goers about what liquids are in their cups. It seems as if the amount of police patrol has actually increased since the ban began, which makes me wonder, “Why are you wasting so many tax payer dollars patrolling a beach, and hassling its patrons?” The policemen are on ATV’s, on bicycles, and standing on the boardwalk… there are so many, that you cannot turn a corner without seeing one. It is a blatant waste of money which the city claims to be necessary for the “good” of the people, I see it as superfluous and outright ridiculous. Send them to areas of San Diego which have real crime issues- not just a bunch of drunks in bikinis- or spend your money elsewhere.

While seeking policy suggestions from the city’s residents is laudable, the question remains whether the submissions will have any real influence on the city’s policy.  We will have to wait and see.

Why should Congressmen tap lobbyists and consultants when they can tap the power of the crowd?

Why should Congressman tap lobbyists and consultants when they can tap the power of the crowd?

Particularly in State legislatures, there are so many issues and specialty areas, how can state legislators possibly be educated enough on very specific bills to make informed decisions?  The answer is they are not.  So, they rely on lobbyists, hire consultants, or talk with special interests to inform them and tell them about the issues.  Then the legislators form a stance and make their decisions.  But what if this could be done…at least in part, by tapping the wisdom of the crowd?  What if your state legislator could engage his or her constituents in a two-way dialogue?  Once the elected official opens the door for real public input, knowledgeable citizens can have a real chance of influencing policy. Instead of hiring an insider lobbyist like Nancy Pelosi, Congressmen would take into account the collective opinion of their constituents.

Want to influence policy in your town or state?  Get started.

crowdsourcing policy and the national agenda for conservatives: Rebuildtheparty.com

While Obama’s followers now have the opportunity to influence policy using new, citizen-driven agendas at sites that aim to crowdsource policy and increase citizen participation in governance, conservatives now have the same opportunity with the launch of Rebuildtheparty.com.  Rebuildtheparty applies the crowdsourcing approach to government 2.0, allowing people to pitch and suggest ideas for the Republican party.   The top two leading voter ideas are  “Enacting the Fair Tax Plan” and  “Reach out to Ron Paul and the Campaign for Freedom.”  The site is a network of grassroots activists for the Republic party, and it already has 6 Republican party officials who have endorsed their 10 point action plan to strengthen the republican party (including: Saul Anuzis, Michigan GOP Chairman; Ken Blackwell,Former Ohio Secretary of State; Mike Duncan,Current RNC Chairman;Chip Saltsman, Former TN GOP Chairman; and Michael Steele, GOPAC Chairman).

Check it out at:  http://www.Rebuildtheparty.com.

Image courtesy of cforjustice.org

Canadian website to crowdsource community change

ChangeEverything.ca is an online community where people in Vancouver can find information, tools and connections to inspire and support change in their own lives, their communities and the world.  ChangeEverything.ca inspires a grassroots approach for changing your local community.  Members can list things they would like to change, or do, tag their goals, describe them and add pictures.  Other users find goals, add them to their own lists, add comments or blog about the issues therein.  Some ideas include fixing the homeless situation in Vancouver and saving a local park from demolition.

In their own words:

If you want to make changes – in your own life, in your neighbourhood or in your world – then Change Everything is the site for you. It’s fun, it’s free and it’s a great way to work towards positive change for you and our community.

We’re an online community of changemakers. Some of us are longtime activists; some of us are community leaders; and a lot of us are just regular people with a few ideas for how we’d like to change things. We’re focused in Vancouver, the Lower Mainland and Victoria, British Columbia, but we welcome people from anywhere in the world. All you need are positive ideas for change.

While the site is a great first start for initiating local discussion, more tools need to be provided to be effective in transforming the online discussions into real world action.  Currently, it’s more social network and online connector than it is a platform for taking action.

The website is powered by Vancity, Canada’s largest Credit Union.

Why the wisdom of the crowd is driving the future business

Jeff Howe, author of Crowdsourcing,  describes how the wisdom of the crowd is driving the future of business.  We think the same paradigm applies to the future of political advocacy.

Armchair Revolutionary developing apps for crowdsourcing social change

Armchair Revolutionary develops software and related technologies for crowdsourcing, task management, and information management related to social change. The first app, Armrev1.0, will be launching Fall 2008.  Still in private Beta, no one is sure exactly how the process works.  The site lists current active areas for submission:

(a) Games for Change – Games for Change (also known as G4C) is a movement and community of practice dedicated to using computer and video games for social change. An individual video game may also be referred to as a “game for change” if it is produced by this community or shares its ideals.

(b) Synthetic Biology – Synthetic Biology includes the broad redefinition and expansion of biotechnology, with the ultimate goals of being able to design and build engineered biological systems that process information, manipulate chemicals, fabricate materials and structures, produce energy, provide food, and maintain and enhance human health and our environment.

(c) Secure Voting – software, technologies and methodologies for secure voting.

(d) Mobile Technologies – applications and technologies for enhanced organizing, communications, and service and information delivery on the world’s 3.5 billion mobile phones with an emphasis on the developing world.

(e) Innovative Educational Curriculums – software, technologies and methodologies for innovating education.

Check back here for more updates once it launches!

Is Obama crowdsourcing policy agenda with Change.gov?

While there is not much to the site yet, Obama’s launching of Change.gov does more than just keep the public notified of the transition period, it embraces the public’s ideas and shows a continuing commitment to interact with the American public.  In addition to information about the transition team, Change.gov is asking the American people to share their stories and share their vision for new policy in his administration.

But will the public really be able use this site to influence the new administration? Will Obama listen if people use it?  We will have to wait to find out what other tools will be designed for the site and whether any of it will matter.  One thing is for sure, Obama is continuing his trend of using social media to gather support, furthering his message of transparancy in government, and at least attempting to give the public another outlet to influence public policy.

New site allows public markup of congressional bills

Publicmarkup.org is a place to post a bill, to solicit public comment, and suggest edits to the substance of the legislation. “PublicMarkup.org, an ongoing experiment in preparing legislation more inclusively by opening bills to online, public review. PublicMarkup.org gives you the opportunity to review and comment on proposed bills before they are even introduced—or while they are pending—in Congress.”

Publicmarkup’s goals represent a new dimension in participatory democracy, one that policypitch is engaging citizens in: the legislative drafting process and bill proposals do not just have to be undertaken by those in power.  Currently, at the state level, a legislator thinks of an idea (often with help of a public advocacy group or special interest), bounces around the logistics of the idea, the political capital to make it happen, and its impact on the community.  Once its a go, the legislator has staff members draft the actual bill.  Then it goes to committee hearings and through the state House or Senate.  There is often no public comment or influence by the population at large.

But why should the ideas be limited only to legislators or special interests?  Sites like Publicmarkup and Policypitch aim to change that.  While publicmarkup focuses on bills at the national level, Policypitch aims to serve as an idea incubator/public brainstorm platform where citizens can introduce ideas for legislation, craft bills themselves, and allow others to comment and/or contribute their thoughts.  The proposed bills that gain the most traction float to the top, and will compel action by the legislators.  In effect, sites like Policypitch and publicmarkup should not only allow citizens to edit and comment on proposed bills, but also introduce and iron out details of thier own proposals, all with the help of the community at large.

Now we just need to the people to make it happen!

Crowd-powered Dog Park in New Orleans takes shape

A group of residents in Brooadmoor have worked hard through two years of planning to collectively develop a plan for their own neighborhood dog park, collaborated with the neighborhood organizations, gathered the necessary resources, and are now working with the city to make it a reality.  Below is an interview with Dogmoor leaders Duffy Voigt and Maggie Carrol.

Who came up with the Dogmoor idea and why?

The original broad concept of a dogpark to serve the Broadmoor neighborhood came from the community-driven planning efforts of early 2006. In the Broadmoor Redevelopment Plan, residents identified the importance of pets in the family and community as it relates to uses of park space for a dog park and the need to foster responsible pet ownership. Duff Voigt, a Broadmoor home owner who had just moved to the neighborhood weeks before Katrina, coined the “Dogmoor” term and spearheaded the work of the Dogmoor Committee. After having moved to the French Quarter temporarily while his house was being renovated,  he had the opportunity to take advantage of the unofficial Cabrini Dog Park and wanted to see that experience come home to Broadmoor. The dog park provided an excellent resource for collecting and sharing neighborhood information, dog training, and community building. It also got the dogs far more tired than just walking them would have, and gave instant dog socialization that urban dogs often lack. When he expressed his desire to bring a dogpark to Broadmoor, several community members joined him and began working as a committee to make Dogmoor a reality.

How did you work with the neighbors and the neighborhood group to make the dog park a reality?

We’re still in the process of getting the dog park to reality. We are currently coalition building to get surrounding businesses and communities on board with the park. The park obviously presents several major benefits to all involved, and we anticipate this will be the easiest part of the process. Between the increased commercial traffic and public safety improvements of having people in a commercial/light industrial zoned area, the dog park seems a no-brainer.

What online collaborative tools would have helped in the organization process?

Email has been a large part of the planning process. We have also have made limited use of Google Docs in order to share documents amongst committee members. The website will also likely provide a way to issue announcements to park users as well as solicit donations for its maintenance.

Why does this benefit New Orleans and are there any other specific areas of the city that you can think of where dog parks would be welcomed by the neighbors?

An officially sanctioned dog park would finally lend legitimacy to the dog park movement within the city. There are several unofficial dog parks around the city that have evolved through custom. However, having the dogs off-leash in these parks is technically illegal, and they are always under the threat of being closed down by city officials. They provide a community gathering place, get people on the street with their dogs, and promote responsible dog ownership.

Every neighborhood in New Orleans could use a dog park, but the existing “maverick” parks at Colosseum Square, Markey Park, Cabrini Park, and the Audubon river front could use some infrastructure improvement (or creation) and official city recognition and support.

Find our more about Dogmoor.  Maybe the Dogmoor committee can show the NOLAguys, who used Policypitch to pitch an idea to build a dog park in the warehouse district, how its done!

Brooklyn Community tries crowd-curated museum

The Brooklyn museum hosted a crowd-powered event in July – August 2008 called Click!  Click! asked its community for art, hosted an online forum for commenting and critquing, and then ended in an open exhibition at the museum:

Click! is a photography exhibition that invites Brooklyn Museum’s visitors, the online community, and the general public to participate in the exhibition process. Taking its inspiration from the critically acclaimed book The Wisdom of Crowds, in which New Yorker business and financial columnist James Surowiecki asserts that a diverse crowd is often wiser at making decisions than expert individuals, Click! explores whether Surowiecki’s premise can be applied to the visual arts—is a diverse crowd just as “wise” at evaluating art as the trained experts?

Click! is an exhibition in three consecutive parts. It begins with an open call—artists are asked to electronically submit a work of photography that responds to the exhibition’s theme, “Changing Faces of Brooklyn,” along with an artist statement.

After the conclusion of the open call, an online forum opens for audience evaluation of all submissions; as in other juried exhibitions, all works will be anonymous. As part of the evaluation, each visitor answers a series of questions about his/her knowledge of art and perceived expertise.

Click! culminates in an exhibition at the Museum, where the artworks are installed according to their relative ranking from the juried process. Visitors will also be able to see how different groups within the crowd evaluated the same works of art. The results will be analyzed and discussed by experts in the fields of art, online communities, and crowd theory.

Is it possible that this success can be transferred to a larger scale?  What if Prospect1– launching November 1, 2008 in New Orleans – contained a crowd-powered element for the next biennial in 2010?

More on Prospect1 and future crowd participation here.