Great exchange. This hits at the heart of my interests - public engagement in meeting public challenges. Often this direct participation involves government and is sometimes hosted by government. My non-profit E-Democracy.org specializes in doing the more institutionally risky things with online participation that government tend to avoid. (I used to work in government and have advised governments in 30 countries.) Have you checked out this online idea generator/poll? If not, check out: http://allourideas.org/engageonline On the digital divide point ... I think it is important to note that the democratic divide is far wider in many countries than the digital one. So it makes sense to invest in inclusive digital projects for civic engagement. We have one with major funding to engage ALL neighbors with special outreach to diverse communities, immigrants (like our large Somali and Hmong populations), lower income. Project info: http://e-democracy.org/inclusion Outreach: http://beneighbors.org The City of St. Paul has partnered. I think this model has merit, particularly when hosting two-way online exchange and seeking to foster public volunteer capacity and leadership. Steven Clift E-Democracy.org P.S. Papers and speeches galore: http://stevenclift.com
Received on Wednesday, 10 October 2012 12:15:15 UTC