participation

Joining the open source (and CityCamp) movement has been one of the best experiences of my life. I've been involved with open source for over a decade, but I never got involved in a community project in any significant way--until I found CityCamp. I haven't submitted a single line of code, but I'm able to bring my project management and community-building skills to the table. That's important because it highlights the fact that there is more to open source contributions than writing code. » Read more

The City of Honolulu is calling all citizens to join the open government movement on December 3 and to prove the value of government data as a platform. They hope to entice citizens to shape the future of their city by identifying open government opportunities, discussing technology, and formulating solutions. Civic groups, designers, "govies," techies, developers, and more are encouraged to participate. The organizers of CityCamp Honolulu are excited to host this open government unconference in preparation for a 2012 Code for America project. » Read more

From amazing metaphors involving adorable puppies to reflections about how data can transform generalities into actions, I was fortunate to attend the first CityCamp held in Minneapolis, Minnesota on November 12, 2011. This un-conference is designed to be more of an open exchange of ideas than the traditional professional conference that most of us are use to – whatever profession you work in. » Read more

My experience with the open source way of doing things dates back to my university days in India. During those days, I had a very narrow view with regards to what exactly open source is and what its true meaning is. This view was limited only to the question “why should one give away his work for free to anyone?" I was ignorant about the beauty of the open source methodology that rests on the principle of creative collaboration. » Read more

Montréal Ouvert is a citizens’ initiative to obtain a formal open data policy for the city of Montréal, Canada. Launched by four Montrealers in August 2010 to mobilize public and political support for the adoption of an open data policy for the city of Montreal, it has had considerable success. The online presence includes 567 Facebook Fans, 743 Twitter followers and tens of thousands of visits to its website. Over 1 year, Montréal Ouvert organised three public meetings, two hackathons, and presented at over 8 conferences – not to mention blogging, tweeting, report writing, media interviews and general communication in both official languages – no easy task! » Read more

In a new blog post, Gartner’s Andrea Di Maio asks if it’s time to pull the plug on government websites? Di Maio cites one Japanese city’s decision to migrate its online presence to Facebook as an example of an outside-the-box approach to government web operations.

One comment from ‘Carolyn’ makes a strong case why the Facebook approach is short-sighted: » Read more

Open source research often paints the community as a homogeneous landscape. I have collected stories from open source contributors to begin constructing a new narrative of diverse experience. These contributors are 20 women and men, living in seven countries. » Read more

I participated in the first-ever Twitter @townhall meeting hosted by the White House on July 7. Of course, I wanted to see if my questions would make it to the big screen, but I was more interested in the participation and transparency of the event. » Read more

How do you get techies, govies, and citizens to identify, collaborate, and start creating solutions for your local government? Host a CityCamp.

It's easier than you think. The first CityCamp Raleigh started as a conversation about citizen engagement, but we realized that we could do more than just talk about it. A dozen people came together over 12 weeks to make CityCamp Raleigh a reality. Over 225 people attended three days of collaboration, sharing, and encouraging openness--focusing on improving access to data and solutions for local government. » Read more

Have you taken the Ada Initiative Census? Nearly 2,000 people have taken part so far to help measure women's participation and representation in open technology and culture. “We want to know what women are working on and how each community’s culture affects women,” said Ada Initiative co-founder Valerie Aurora. “We also want to know where to direct our work in helping women in the community.” » Read more