Manitoba United Believes in Initiatives that Compel Performance
One of the problems with government is that is much too easy to slough off a complaint and take no action to rectify it. This is a broadly common issue to both Municipal government and Provincial government as well as all its agencies.To avoid citizen disillusionment with politicians and public services this really needs attention.
You might note that there is one other policy initiative entry having to do with technology more generally. This particular innovation was important enough to stand on its own. If you would like to see it for yourself the web address is http://seeclickfix.com
ReplyDeleteOriginally developed in the US, this technology is becoming widespread. According to Wikipedia who describes it better than I can:
SeeClickFix is a web tool that allows citizens to report non-emergency neighborhood issues, which are communicated to local government, as a form of community activism. It has an associated free mobile phone application.
The tool centers around a web-based map that displays all user comments. All users may add comments, suggest resolutions, or add video and picture documentation. Anyone can elect to receive email alerts based on "Watch Areas" by geographical area and filtering reports by keyword.
Founded in September 2008, SeeClickFix is based in New Haven, Connecticut, and currently covers more than 25,000 towns and 8,000 neighborhoods, both in the United States and abroad. While it continually expands, the system has built its strongest networks in New Haven[1] and Philadelphia.[2] The site received its 50,000th issue report in August 2010 - from Sonora, Mexico.[3]
The site allows for anonymity of reporting as a way to encourage more people to report issues, hoping for transparency that keeps civic agencies accountable.[4] Ben Berkowitz, one of the founders, says that what sets SeeClickFix apart from other hyperlocal sites is that it can foster interaction among government, news media and residents.[5] Participating news organizations include The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Miami Herald, and Philadelphia Inquirer.[6] News outlets following stories from SeeClickFix often stimulate responses from local government.[7] City governments such as Houston, Philadelphia, Tucson, and New Haven use the site as a work order system.[6] Participating cities are charged $100 a month.[8]
The site aims not only to hold government accountable, but to facilitate community volunteering. Co-founder Ben Berkowitz has stated, "We hope to get citizens participating in government rather than just consuming it."[9]
The tool has also been made into an iPhone App, which combines GPS tracking and the iPhone's built-in camera to allow users to report issues from their mobile phones. The site contains a widget generator that provides code for creating customized displays to embed on external sites. The text widget displays a list of reported issues within the defined area, and the map widget displays them spatially using Google Maps software.
The technology is adaptable and it doesn’t have to be about just municipal or it doesn’t have to be about something the government should fix. – for example it could show photo radar traps, it could show muggings and whatever you wanted to track. If you live in a particular neighbourhood it could send your mobile device a message about break-in in your neighbourhood – and the list goes on. The nice thing is that if an item is posted , say a street light out, you do not have to worry about who it should be reported to if not government because it is already sent there automatically. The really neat thing is that it hold the quasi work order open until the problem is resolved so everyone gets to see the performance and how long it took.
Manitoba United is clearly in favour of bringing in this type of technology to improve civic service accountability and resident satisfaction.
SeeClickFix is usable in more tan just Winnipeg. any Community could opt in. It could also be used in non urban areas. Similar to our own Manitoba United blog that is looking for high value crowd sourced knowledge, SeeClickFix is an worthwhile crowd sourced initiative.
ReplyDeleteHere is a link - even though Winnipeg is not subscribed, people already have made entries
ReplyDeletehttp://www.seeclickfix.com/can_winnipeg