It goes by many names – “civic collaboration,” “civic innovation,” “community-sourcing,” “citizen engagement” – but whatever you call it, government agencies around the world increasingly are bringing citizens into the problem-solving process.  Denver, Atlanta, Mexico City, Bologna, and dozens of other cities have launched innovation programs to foster citizen collaborations that improve life for the whole community.  Even the U.S. National Park Service is experimenting with public engagement through its Stewardship Institute, “a collaborative for change” that also strengthens the agency’s relationships with the conservation community.

“The approach is collaborative, convening people of diverse training and experience, stewarding the National Park Service into the 21st century.”

The idea behind civic collaboration is to take citizen activism beyond voting and influencing policy to bringing community members into the process of governing and delivering city services.  Not only does civic collaboration create transparency and expand community relationships, it takes advantage of the whole community’s broad pool of diverse experience and talent and breaks through institutional thinking.  Civic collaboration also requires  an openness to uncomfortable ideas and experimentation, an acceptance of failure, and a willingness to learn and try again.

One of the best known efforts in the U.S. is New Urban Mechanics, a City agency formed in Boston in 2010.  New Urban Mechanics fosters collaborations on a wide range of diverse projects, from building better park benches to creating high tech apps, with the mission of “using citizen engagement to deliver transformative City services to Boston’s residents.”  Current projects include testing autonomous vehicles, to bring greater safety, access, and reliability to the transportation system, the Housing Innovation Lab, for pioneering innovative housing models and systems, and the BPS Experience Lab, for finding and testing new ways to improve the Boston Public Schools experience.

“As the City’s civic innovation team, New Urban Mechanics pilots experiments that offer the potential to significantly improve the quality of Boston City services.”

Inspired by Boston’s program, Philadelphia created its own New Urban Mechanics agency in 2012, and Utah Valley University launched an Office of New Urban Mechanics in 2014.  The three Urban Mechanics Programs share lessons learned and best practices with each other.  Currently, Utah Valley University, through its New Urban Mechanics program, is running a PolicyHacking Lab where students help lawmakers develop smarter legislation by looking at the performance of similar laws in other states and cities.

WTIA is exploring ways to foster civic collaboration in the Puget Sound Area and apply the collective talents of the tech community to creative problem-solving.  This year’s FullConTech will focus on that topic.  On May 22, people from government, industry, non-profit, and education will gather at Seattle City Hall for a half-day to learn from experts in civic collaboration, including Nigel Jacob, co-founder of the Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics, and work together to develop innovative solutions for the Seattle community.  

Find out more about FullConTech 2017 and register for the event below:

 

Learn about other communities experimenting with civic collaboration:

Chattanooga

Chicago

Los Angeles

New York City

San Francisco

Washington, D.C.