Take Your Civic Engagement Online
In a famous song it’s stated that “I found the law and the law one,” but what if you could actually win? What if your interest and voice actually meant something?
It’s not uncommon to find communities where apathy has set in and people just don’t seem to care. Alternatively there are communities where the inhabitants take their voice to the streets, airwaves, online, anywhere that can give them a platform to be heard. CitySourced.com is now a way for you to take your civic engagement online, but more than that, you can be mobile and capture your concerns the moment they become a factor.
CitySourced.com offers users an iPhone app and a web app that allows users to report civil issues of serious concern (potholes, graffiti, trash, snow removal, etc.). Their mobile app is simple and easy to use and allows you to capture media and send your concerns straight to City Hall.
It’s meant as a positive collaboration tool between the community and the powers that be to enact change, and develop stronger ties with their constituency. It’s also an innovative approach to engage a new generation in taking part and sharing their concern in a way that is easy for them by using devices they already likely own.
What are your thoughts? Does a mobile app such as what CitySourced.com is offering compel you to take your community duties more seriously? Chime in and let us know what you think.
1 Comment
As founder of SeeClickFix, (an app and website that reports potholes, graffiti and anything else that one wants improved in their community to thousands of Governments, Utilities, and non-Profits) we have seen communities really rally around not only reporting the issues but also helping to fix the issues and having meaningful conversations about their communities.
http://www.seeclickfix.com/issues/1300 is a good example of Citizen, Advocate, Media and State and Municipal conversation.
While this is one of the unresolved issues on the site, there are many more that are resolved. Its not the on-demand response from gov that is most important but the civic process that can occur while communicating with one’s community and one’s gov.