Civic technology

Civic technology is technology (mainly information technology) that enables engagement or participation of the public for stronger development, enhancing citizen communications, improving government infrastructure, and generally improving the public good.[1][2][3] It encompasses civic applications, platforms supporting government bodies, institutions and other software enabling those goals.

The definition of what constitutes civic technology is contested to a certain extent,[4] especially with regards to companies engaged in the sharing economy, such as Uber, Lyft, and AirBnb. For example, AirBnb's ability to provide New York residents with housing during the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy could be considered a form of civic technology.[5] However, Nathaniel Heller, Managing Director of the Research for Development Institute's Governance Program contends that for-profit platforms definitively fall outside of the scope of civic technology: Heller has said that "while citizen-to-citizen sharing is indeed involved, the mission of these companies is focused on maximizing profit for their investors, not any sort of experiment in building social capital."[6]

Civic Technology is built by a variety of companies, organizations and volunteer groups. One prominent example is Code for America, a not-for-profit based in San Francisco. This organization has four primary focuses: Health and Human Services, Security and Justice, Economic Development, and Communication & Engagement. Through these four primary topics of concern, Code for America uses what the government has already implemented and made change to make these resources more available to the general public. Another example of a Civic Technology organization is the Chi Hack Night, based in Chicago. The Chi Hack Night is a weekly, volunteer-run event for building, sharing and learning about Civic Technology.

History

As time has gone on in the United States, technology has made leaps and bounds. There has been a great importance placed on the improvement of technology in nearly every sector. Vast improvements have been made in sectors ranging from cellular phones to surgical tools. Fairly recently, Americans made the transition from cell phones to smartphones and surgeons began using high-tech surgical robots that assist them. Technology has taken over, and is now a part of every American's daily life.

Today, events known as "hackathons" are often hosted by tech-savvy groups of people with experience in fields such as computer programming, graphic design, and hardware and software programming. These events focus on bettering software to make it more user friendly and easier for members of the community to access.

Another huge part of modern civic technology is social media. Companies such as Facebook and Twitter allow citizens from all over the U.S. and the world to communicate and share information. News outlets, such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal have their own Facebook and Twitter accounts which allow them to post news articles to the sites. This creates an environment in which individuals have nearly instant access to news. These social media outlets also have mobile apps which allow users to access information from nearly anywhere on their phones, tablets, and laptops, making the sharing of information essentially instantaneous.

Technology is now a vast field, constantly improving and changing with the times with the goal of improving lives by making them simpler.

Span of the Civic Technology Space

According to a study conducted by the International Data Corporation (IDC), an estimated $6.4 billion will be spent on civic technology in 2015 out of approximately $25.5 billion that governments in the United States will spend on external-facing technology projects.[7][8] A Knight Foundation survey of the civic technology field found that the number of civic technology companies grew by roughly 23% annually between 2008 and 2013.[9]

A 2015 report from the Knight Foundation attempts to map different focuses within the civic technology space. It broadly categorizes civic technology projects into two categories: open government and community action.[10]

Open Government:

Community Action:

As advanced technologies become commonplace in society and available throughout the population, many local governments and officials have begun utilizing them for public outreach and feedback. Specifically, the internet is being used more for communication between governing officials and citizens.

Citizens are also now given access to their representatives through social media. They are able to express their concerns directly to government officials through sites like [Twitter] and [Facebook]. There have even been past cases of online voting being a polling option for local elections, which have seen vastly increased turnouts, such as in an Arizona election in 2000 which saw a turnout double that of the previous election. It is asserted though that civic technology in government provides for a good management technique but lacks in providing fair democratic representation.[11]

Effects

Effects of civic technology on social behavior

Because of the convenience provided by civic technology, there is growing concern about the effects it may have on social behavior.

In regards to elections and online polling, there is the potential for voters to make less informed decisions because of the ease of voting. Although many more voters will turn out, they may only be doing so because it is easy and may not be consciously making a decision based on their own synthesized opinion. It is suggested that if online voting becomes more common, so should constituent-led discussions regarding the issues or candidates being polled.[11]

The importance of face-to-face interactions has also been called to question with the increase in e-mails and social media and a decrease in traditional, in-person social interaction. Technology as a whole may be responsible for this change in social norm, but it also holds potential for turning it around with audio and video communication capabilities. More research needs to be conducted in order to determine if these are appropriate substitutes for in-person interaction, or if any substitute is even feasible. [11]

Effects of civic technology on socioeconomics

With advanced technologies coming at higher costs and with an increased reliance on civic technologies may leave low-income families in the dark if they cannot afford the platforms for civic technology, such as computers and tablets. This causes an increase in the gap between lower and middle/high socioeconomic class families.[11]

Knowledge of how to use computers is equally important when considering factors of accessing civic technology applications online, and is also generally lower in low-income households. Public Schools have taken the lead in ensuring proper technology access and education in the classroom to better prepare children for the high-tech world, but there is still a clear difference between online contributions from those with and without experience on the internet.[11]

Future of Civic Technology

As the field of civic technology advances further through the coming years it seems as though apps and handheld devices will become a key focus for development as more companies and municipalities reach out to developers to help with specific issues. Apps are being used in conjunction with hand held devices to make life easier. Tasks such as communication, data tracking, and safety are just a few of the topics app developers and communities have tried to make easier. The cheapest way for citizens to get help and information is through neighbors and others around them. By linking people through apps and websites that harbor conversation and promote civil service cities have found an inexpensive way to provide services to its people. [12] [13]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Civic Tech: Entrepreneurship Opportunities".
  2. ↑ "Nick Bilton: New York Times: Changing Government and Tech With Geeks".
  3. ↑ "But What Is “Civic”?".
  4. ↑ http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/techtank/posts/2015/04/20-civic-technology
  5. ↑ https://www.airbnb.com/disaster-response
  6. ↑ https://www.globalintegrity.org/posts/the-sharing-economy-is-not-civic-tech/
  7. ↑ http://www.techrepublic.com/article/civic-tech-in-2015-6-9-billion-to-connect-citizens-to-services-and-to-one-another/
  8. ↑ http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/techtank/posts/2015/04/20-civic-technology
  9. ↑ http://www.knightfoundation.org/media/uploads/publication_pdfs/knight-civic-tech.pdf
  10. ↑ http://knightfoundation.org/features/civictech/
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 Cavanaugh, John W. (2000). "E-Democracy: Thinking About The Impact Of Technology On Civic Life". National Civic Review 89 (3): 229. Retrieved 2015-11-21.
  12. ↑ http://www.govtech.com/dc/8-Cities-Showcase-Next-Civic-Tech-Apps-Initiatives.html
  13. ↑ http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2026474_2026675_2039309,00.html
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