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democracyLab

Organization's slogan: 
Can Technology Save Democracy? We think so.
Civic Organization Disclaimer: 
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What does Democracy Lab do?
 
We connect tech sector experts to civic issues they care about. 
 
A PLATFORM FOR CIVIC TECHNOLOGY
The civic tech movement is trying to invent the future.  It’s a future where every person can contribute to the decisions that affect them, where public services are delivered dynamically, and where collective intelligence fits in the palm of your hand.
Organizational engagement: 
Active
Organization's headquarters: 
Seattle
Organization's geographic focus: 
Seattle — currently.
Volunteer Opportunities: 
http://www.democracylab.org/get_involved DemocracyLab is building a transparent, collaborative, inclusive, civil, and meritocratic community dedicated to using technology to improve society. We use Slack to communicate (make sure to click on the word “Channels” in the left hand navigation after joining). We use Google Drive to store and share documentation of our work. We use Trello to organize our tasks and priorities. We use Github to manage our code (MIT open source license). We use Meetup to organize open, regularly scheduled meetings (in Seattle, WA). You can take a look at our Interactive Prototype to see the current design of our platform. We've launched a MVP version of our product. Take a look here!
Contact person: 
Mark Frischmuth

Full LV Pattern Deck in Chinese (reduced filesize)

in
Resource name: 
full-lv-pattern-deck-chinese-reduced
Resource type: 
Pattern cards

Community Oriented Social Media

Pattern ID: 
138
Rudyard
Discussion: 

Access to information and connections is essential to be successful in the 21st century. There is talk in many cities across the country of establishing municipal broadband- for example the grassroots organization “Upgrade Seattle” wants to “make the internet a city-owned and operated utility.” in Seattle.

 

A possible step further would be to create a publicly owned, operated and funded Social Network that would fill a role similar to that of radio and TV public broadcasting. The first and most obvious benefit would be the same one that comes from public broadcasting, that is- providing an alternative to the corporately owned, commercially funded media platforms, with a greater emphasis on community issues.

 

The services that companies like Facebook provide are valuable, and many of us willing give up a lot of equally valuable information in exchange for those services. The personal data Facebook mines from us is sold to other companies and used for market analysis, as well for generating personally targeted advertisements. A great wealth of information is produced thru all the clicks and likes and views from the users. All this data could go to good uses the private sector is not likely to be concerned with. Collection of census data and statistics for aiding scientific research are some of the immediate possibilities.

 

There is a need for people to have greater control over their information and how it is used. Perhaps not only a need, but a right. Then, beyond the issue of how our information is used, there’s the issue of how information filters to us through our “feeds.” The posts we see from our friends and the pages we follow (as well as advertisers) are sifted and prioritized based on hidden algorithms. There should be concern about how this system can create personal bubbles and opinion echo-chambers. Not to mention how it could influence people’s mental states (based on whether they see more police shootings or puppy videos, for example).

Categories: 
organization
Categories: 
social
Themes: 
Community Action
Pattern status: 
Draft

Towards a New Public Infrastructure

in
Resource name: 
Towards a New Public Infrastructure — preprint
Resource type: 
Articles

Collective Intelligence for the Common Good

Organization's slogan: 
The CI4CG Action Research and Community Network consists of a group of nearly 100 like-minded individuals who have subscribed to the statement of principles and therefore aim to advance research and practice in collective intelligence for the common good. Join our mailing list at <a href="http://scn9.scn.org/mailman/listinfo/ci4cg-announce">CI4CG-announce</a> or contact the organisers if you’d like to join the network.

We are interested in working with practitioners and researchers from all relevant fields. Our hope is to consciously and organically nurture this community / network. The intent of this conscious community development is of course not to build a gated community, but to help focus attention on relevant issues including how best to engage the “outside” world and maintain porous borders. We hope to transcend the constraints of many dominant habits, institutions, and norms, especially when their strict obedience compels us to work in ways that are likely to be ineffective in addressing the common good of the planet and its inhabitants. It is our intent to help develop, maintain, and enhance projects and systems that are actually used.

Year the organization was founded: 
2013
Organizational engagement: 
Active
Organization's headquarters: 
cyberspace
Organization's geographic focus: 
Earth
Volunteer Opportunities: 
Join us! Planning events, designing resources, getting the word out
Contact person: 
Douglas Schuler
Contact information: 
douglas@publicsphereproject.org
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