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Civic technology companies are platforms, products, and services that facilitate civic engagement.[1][unreliable source?][2][unreliable source?][3][unreliable source?] Civic technology encompasses any type of technology that enables greater participation in government affairs, or "assists government in delivering citizen services and strengthening ties with the public".[4][unreliable source?] The phrase can essentially be used to describe any company that is concerned with improving the quality, access, and efficiency of government services within the political system through technological means.[2][unreliable source?] Although similar, Civic Technology is different from Government Technology.[5][unreliable source?] Civic technology seeks to connect citizens with each other or with their government.[6][unreliable source?] Government Technology primarily seeks to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of governments' internal operations.[5][unreliable source?] Although the term can be used differently, Government Technology can also be classified as a subcategory within civic technology due to the indirect benefits citizens gain from government efficiency.[7][unreliable source?]
Categories of these companies
editMost current civic technology companies fall under a few categories. First is Government Technology, which is technology used by nations to either increase the efficiency of their operations or to enhance their connection to citizens.[7][unreliable source?] Another category is Advocacy, which is made up of civic technology companies used for political or social purposed by non-government groups.[7][unreliable source?] The last main category is Voting, which encompasses companies that seek to improve voting systems.[7][unreliable source?]
Civic technology organizations
editPlatform Name | Founder | Dates Created | Open Source | Corporate Structure |
---|---|---|---|---|
VotingWorks | Ben Adida | 2018 | Open | Non-profit |
Pol.is | Open | Non-profit | ||
Gov Tech | Jacqueline Poh[8] | 2016 | Open | Non-Profit |
Bang the Table | Matthew Crozier and Crispin Butteriss[9] | 2008 | Open | Non-Profit |
City Innovate | Kamran Saddique[10] | 2015 | Open | Non-Profit |
Code for America | Jennifer Pahlka[11] | 2009 | Open | Non-Profit |
coUrbanize | Karin Brandt[12] | 2013 | Open | Non-Profit |
OpenGov | Zachary Bookman[13] | 2012 | Open | Non-Profit |
Accela | Gary Kovacs[14] | 2018 | Open | For-Profit |
CityBase | Mike Duffy[15] | 2013 | Open | Non-Profit |
MuniSight | Greg Berger[16] | 2017 | Open | For-Profit |
Nava | Rohan Bhobe | 2015 | Open | Public Benefit Corporation (PBC) |
Nextdoor | Nirav Tolia, Sarah Leary, Prakash Janakiraman and David Wiesen[17] | 2008 | Open | Non-Profit |
Fiscal Note | Timothy Hwang, Gerald Yao, and Jonathan Chen[18] | 2013 | Open | For-Profit |
Maptionnaire | Maarit Kahila, Anna Broberg[19] | 2011 | Not | For-Profit |
Division of funding by company type
editData on investment provided for civic technology companies from 2011 to 2013 offers insight into the current landscape of these technology companies. Data collected by the Knight Foundation in this time period analyzed the difference in funding between Open Government and Community Action civic technology companies.[20] The Knight Foundation defines Open Government oriented companies as promoting citizen participation in government and Community Action companies as technology companies seeking to empower and unify citizens with a bottom-down approach.[20] Of investment in this time period, Community Action civic technology companies received more funds than Open Government oriented civic technology companies.[20] Within Community Action companies, Neighborhood Forums and P2P Local Sharing received most of the investment funds.[20] Within Open Government civic technology companies, Data Access & Transparency companies and Resident Feedback companies received the largest share of investments within the Open Government category.[20]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Rowley, Jason (12 October 2016). "Civic Tech Faces Uphill Battle In Work To Build A Better Government And Society". MatterMark. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
- ^ a b mheadd (16 April 2015). "Civic Tech: Days of Future Past". Civic.io. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
- ^ Civic Ninjas. "Twitter List of Companies in Knight Foundation's Report on Civic Tech". Civic Ninjas. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
- ^ Wood, Colin (15 August 2016). "What is Civic Tech?". Gov Tech. eRepublic. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
- ^ a b "What's the Difference Between "Civic Tech" and "GovTech"?". CitizenLab's Blog. 2019-08-29. Retrieved 2021-11-09.
- ^ "Exploring Civic Tech and Gov Tech - WeSolve". 20 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-11-09.
- ^ a b c d Poppert, Derek (2021-05-07). "Navigating the field of civic tech". Tradecraft. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
- ^ "About Us". GovTech. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
- ^ "Bang the Table – Participedia". participedia.net. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
- ^ "Team". www.cityinnovate.com. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
- ^ "Jennifer Pahlka". Code for America. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
- ^ Spanring, Christian. "coUrbanize | Press & Awards | Read about the work we're doing". coUrbanize. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
- ^ "About OpenGov - The Leader in Cloud Technology for Government". OpenGov. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
- ^ Gary, Kovacs. "Gary Kovacs Linkedin Page".
- ^ John, Pletz (2019-07-10). "Tech 50 - Mike Duffy, 41". Crain's Chicago Business. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
- ^ Falconer, Justin (2017-05-04). "Announcing MuniSight!". MuniSight. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
- ^ "Join Nextdoor, an app for neighborhoods where you can get local tips, buy and sell items, and more". nextdoor.com. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
- ^ "Global Policy and Market Intelligence". FiscalNote. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
- ^ "About Maptionnaire, Citizen Engagement Platform". Maptionnaire. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e "Knight Foundation: Trends in Civic Tech". www.knightfoundation.org. Retrieved 2021-11-09.