engaging times - we are the engagement generation (online)

Engaging Times

Steven Clift, E-Democracy.org@democracy

Slides: e-democracy.org/learn

1. Story - Engagement Generation

2. 20 Years in 20 Minutes - 5 Lessons

3. Next Decade - 3 Challenges and Opportunities

(Keynote to Consultation Institute, London Oct. 2104)

Outline

Joe

“My husband is missing …”

Raging Mississippi

Search for Joe

Digital engagement engine emerges out of necessity

Tools of engagement● Facebook● Text/SMS● Google Docs● Online maps● Signup Genius

● Weebly● YouTube● Paypal● Email● AKA “The Cloud”

Digital request oneTo: Open Twin Cities Online Group -300 membersRe: Mapping tools

Maps & Open Data● Government: PDFs,

Difficult interfaces

● Commercial: Pretty, less adaptable

● Community: Open Street Maps, gov and crowd-sourced data - FieldPaper.org to print river search areas (rec. by Open TC)

Digital request twoTo: Federal agency that runs river lock and damsRe: Posters for staff on river, questions

Response: Nothing but crickets

Note to self ...

Pick up the

phone!

Engagement hive responds● River shoreline search

coordination

● Helping the family

● Community fundraiser

● Local councillor connection at event, offers to help with police

● Note: Joe remains missing as of Nov. 18, 2014, presumed drowned

You are in the center

“networked individualism”

You

Friends

Family

Communities

Prof. Peers

Public

“Entities”

Networked engagement ● How can institutions join in?

… as individuals digitally engage vs.

● How do we invite people in on our terms?

We are the

Engagement GenerationWill we use digital engagement to

re-shape the public world around us?

20 Years, 20 Minutes

I’ve been stuck in the future ...

5 lessons

Government by day, Citizen by night ...

#HongKong, Arab Spring, ...

Is not “everyday” democracy.

Scale to local public life?

And scale to community life?

1. About people2. Agenda-setting3. Institutions matter4.Loudest voices5. Beyond passion

… questions, then future Challenges and Opportunities

20 Years, 5 Lessons

1.About people

Circles Flashback● Defining e-

democracy early days

● Seeking the citizen-centre, now social media based in public life

Political

Groups

Private

SectorGovernment

Media and

Commercial

Content

E-Citizens

2.Agenda-setting

Two-way democratizes

City Hall

In-person

ConversationsShared on

Facebook

Your

Networks

Local

Media

Y

o

u

Local Biz

Nei

gh

bo

r #

1

Local

Online

GroupsJoin Group

Online public space in “real community”

3.Institutions Matter

Institutions - Build Capacity● “Of” verses “On” the Internet● Evolution of project accountability

o Late 1990s: Shoot for the moon, get halfway, feel like a

failure … disappear EDem: Set low expectations and declare victory

o 2014: Set expectations and measure results

4.Loudest voices

● Key barrier. Most partisan, angry often poison the pool.

● Many use this to dismiss ALL, very diverse online voices.

Loudest voices quagmire

Only 23%

Never Talk

Politics

Source:

http://bit.ly/pewcivicreport

Over 2x

Never Talk

Politics

Online

Countering Loudest Voices? ● Culture of civility, real names, accountability

● “They are my voters” - Representative geo connection

● Strong facilitation without costly pre-moderation?

● E-consultation tools laundry lists and guides

● Ideal? Lake Hiawatha exchange: 36 posts, in-depth, input requested, results into process

5.Beyond Passion

5. Building beyond passion● Investment: More are *paid* to care, make

change, engage

● Sustained Impact: mySociety, OKFN, ODI, Sunlight, CfA, Local Code for X, GovLab, Gov policies, OGP - Open Government Partnership

● Global Lesson Sharing: DoWire -> #opengov, gazillion online groups, Open Gov FB

Open Government Partnership

Commitments, Action Plans, IRMVideo on

YouTube

These are Engaging Times

We are the engagement generation. We are using the

new tools of our times - digital.

Questions Break

Then five challenges ...

Challengesand

Opportunities Next decade and more ...

1. New Voices2. Facebook Native Politicians3. Open Data and Civic Apps

4.Serendipity versus Filters5. Making it Visual

Challenges and Opportunities

1.New Voices, Reach All

Raising New Voices?

Need Numbers

Source: PewInternet

Over 50K Income

2x more likely

New Voices - Just Ask? Yes.

Slides

Video

More

2.Facebook Native Politicians

● Facebook: Engage YOUR local constituents, community activists, supporters … “friends”

● Twitter: Message media, be visible political player, engage most wired

2. Facebook Native Politicians

2. Facebook Native Politicians● “Friending for Office”● Councillors asking questions, directly

engaging - New councillors Minneapolis● Personal profiles key - Pages secondary

Open Gov Facebook Group● Secret

strategy: One click to link wired councillors to #opengov

● 2200 members, 100+ countries

3.Open Data and Civic Tech

Will work for stickers ... civic hacking

Open Gov’t Data

Services v. Democracy● Local Civic Tech movement more services focused -

Code for America Summit highlights:o Food stamp web app redesigno Expunge.io - remove juvenille recordo Atlanta courts - tackling long lines

● Democracy, citizen engagement, consultation, deliberation, power impact needs “local everywhere” attention for national change

● Inclusive user design, Service Design gaining steam

With, not for

Chicago is smart● Smart Chicago

Collaborative

● CUTGroup - User testing

● Large Lots - Buy empty lots near you from city

● SchoolCuts.org

Democratic Open Data Deficit● Stronger

o Budget and spendingo National politician infoo Politicized

accountability

● Weakero Transparency for

engagemento Public meetingso Local democracyo Timely notice

● Projects to Watcho Open Civic Datao Poplus “Components” -

mySociety et alo Google Civic APIo OpenStateso Free Law Founderso Councilmatic

Conclusion

Engagement Generation

Let’s be the engagement generation in public life.

Build what can be. Together.

● Democratic data generation - fill gaps

● E-Listening - Better, more representative decisions not just more input

● Empower representatives

● Funding, support, convening, research

Making Challenges Opportunities

● Take OGP commitments, plans across govs

● Equity, inclusion, outreach

● Rule of law - create legal baseline, rights

● Direct citizen problem-solving

Making Challenges Opportunities

Thanks!StevenClift.com

e-democracy.org/learn

@democracy

clift@e-democracy.org

+1-612-234-7072 - M

Slides I pulled out due to time constraints…

Bonus Slides

3. Agenda-setting works● ... pre-condition to impact

decision-making, deliberation● Key:

o Two-way, real names, volume constraintso Visit social media “parade” versus

destination experiences● Continuous diffusion of power,

spaces, well-resourced adapt

E-Democracy 50 year planScenario cross from 2002

● “Family and social networking”

● “social networks evolve into movements?”

● “E-citizens ultimate challenge”

E-Listening? ● Tools for decision- makers?

o E-Consultation - Delib, Peak Democracy, MindMixer, Bang the Table, etc.

o APM - Public Insight Network from journalism converted for gov? Edmonton Insight Community

o Pew - Greater equity in name brand social media use

Civic Tech Ecology -

Knight Foundationdocuments $695 millionUS invested

4. Serendipity v. Filters

● Facebook filter - Bubble or saving grace?

● Twitter torrents - Find like-minds, lost at sea?

● Where will we engage different views, people?

2. Serendipity v. Filters

The Email is Dead, Long Live the Email

● Direct access - location, location, location

● E-Newsletters

● Personalized notification

5.Make it Visual

5. Make it Visual

● Pictures, maps, infographics v. text “equality”

Over 1 mil comment to FCC.gov

Online Deliberation Common Ground

● Kettering Fnd tool visualizes “common ground” with live online deliberation: e-democracy.org/cga

Building networked engagement - with people5 Lessons from 20 Years1. About people2. Agenda-setting3. Institutions matter4. Loudest voices5. Beyond passion

Challenges and Opps1. New Voices2. Serendipity versus Filters3. Facebook Native

Politicians4. Making it Visual5. Open Data and Civic Apps