[okfn-br] Fwd: Searching for Snowballs in Silicon Valley - (ICYMI from Sunlight Foundation's Open Gov Voices)

Carolina Rossini carolina.rossini em gmail.com
Segunda Março 18 13:12:26 UTC 2013 

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: The OpenGov Foundation <sayhello em opengovfoundation.org>
Date: Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 4:41 AM
Subject: Searching for Snowballs in Silicon Valley - (ICYMI from Sunlight
Foundation's Open Gov Voices)
To: carolina em eff.org


**
      The OpenGov Foundation is dedicated to developing and deploying
technologies that support every citizen's ability to participate in their
government, and hold it accountable.
  Is this email not displaying correctly?
View it in your
browser<http://us6.campaign-archive2.com/?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=17eb8181a1&e=66a5882ce3>.


   -      ABOUT
US<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=4140b83362&e=66a5882ce3>
   -    MADISON<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=adf7ee1dde&e=66a5882ce3>
   -    PROJECTS<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=4f452c34d6&e=66a5882ce3>
   -    GET INVOLVED<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=348194685f&e=66a5882ce3>
   -    BLOG<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=f925ac3745&e=66a5882ce3>

    *"Searching for Snowballs in Silicon
Valley<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=863cc51a6c&e=66a5882ce3>
"*
By Seamus Kraft
Published March 15, 2013

*S**eamus Kraft is the Executive Director at OpenGov
Foundation<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=5bba9dfde0&e=66a5882ce3>
 -- an organization dedicated to developing and deploying technologies **that
support every citizen's ability to participate in their government and hold
it accountable. You can reach him at
@seamuskraft<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=a529128b31&e=66a5882ce3>
*
 The best technology is insidiously useful. It does not force better ways
of doing business. It suggests them, extending the familiar and comfortable
without the user realizing she has gone farther, faster, smoother. Like the
perfect note in a song, you cannot imagine it not being there.

But technology is only a tool. If it helps you do your job or live your
life more efficiently and effectively, buy it. If it makes life harder,
slower or more costly, don’t buy it. Plain and simple.  Especially in the
United States Congress, where money, time and tech are scarcer than
snowballs in Silicon Valley.

The purpose of Congress is to make policy on behalf of taxpayers. Public
officials perform very specific and specialized tasks to fulfill that
purpose. Citizens keep an eye on them and hold them accountable. Can
technology help these users — inside and outside of government —
collaborate to do their jobs better? Project
Madison<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=c59e1925ea&e=66a5882ce3>,
launched by Rep. Darrell
Issa<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=bf8fedbce4&e=66a5882ce3>
(R-CA),
was our first attempt at answering in the affirmative.

The mission: hack together software to crowdsource critiques of the Stop
Online Piracy Act<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=c3895dca34&e=66a5882ce3>
(SOPA)
while cooperating with citizen-users to transparently and accountably
develop an alternative — the OPEN
Act<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=a4a11ec67a&e=66a5882ce3>
—
that wouldn’t harm the Internet and those who depend on it. "Open
government" was an important, but second-order, development goal.

Here’s how it worked, according to Fast
Company<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=6e8035ede3&e=66a5882ce3>:
"Project Madison is a stripped-down interactive blogging platform, which
allows citizens to select individual passages of legislation, and strike or
add their own language, with comments for each suggestion. Citizens are
encouraged to like or dislike each change, with the most popular
suggestions rising to the top. Each page also has embedded Facebook and
Twitter buttons that link to individual amendments."

Madison wasn’t hard to build. Yet using it to put open government
principles into live-fire practice was a significant risk. To even get off
the ground, it had to pass two tough tests. First, Madison had to
demonstrably help each team member — digital, communications, legislative
staff, Members of Congress —do his or her job more efficiently. And second,
it had to happen as an extension of what its first users — those fighting
 SOPA<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=6c98465e4b&e=66a5882ce3>
 and PIPA<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=fdef17af2f&e=66a5882ce3>
 inside and outside of government — were already doing.

Complicated meant death. Unfamiliar meant death. Time consuming meant death.

*Madison Beta Test Results (December 2011-January 2013)*

Members of the Madison Community: 2,433

Documents in Madison: 11

Edits: 749

Comments: 1,420

Unique Visitors: 667,761

Countries of Origin: 193

Page Views: 1,017,338

We got lucky. Our challenging development environment forced us to do
things we might not have otherwise: build simple, build light, build
exactly to the specs of users leaning over our shoulders in Congress or
bombarding us with tweets. That’s how Madison ended up being a no-nonsense
tool to make an age-old American process — democratic, participatory policy
development — work a little bit more effectively. It wasn’t sexy, but it
did deliver a solid place for citizens to watch the SOPA
markup<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=6984825058&e=66a5882ce3>
, access the bill and amendments in real time, critique and develop
legislation equally alongside the Members of Congress and staff they were
watching on the webcast. Madison users inside of government were armed for
policy battle with the best, most vetted and technically correct
information possible, plus a truly open and collaborative alternative
solution.

As CNN put it<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=5c0d0109cc&e=66a5882ce3>,
Madison "makes the democratic process just a bit easier." And it bought
time for millions of ordinary people and digital job creators to tune in,
black out and quickly change many of the minds that mattered
most<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=499f661645&e=66a5882ce3>:
Members of Congress who had to take a public stance on SOPA and its Senate
counterpart, PIPA. It filled a very timely need, but it also stirred
something far greater in us.  Madison felt like how we - public servants
and citizens - were supposed to be doing our jobs in the 21st century.

Innovating to get it done faster and better. Empowering citizens.
Encouraging participation and open debate. Achieving more together. Isn’t
that how it’s supposed to work in America?

That is what "open government" means to us at
OpenGov<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=bf797f9148&e=66a5882ce3>.
We believe there are as many ways to achieve it as there are jobs to do and
people to do them. What works for Code for America's users in San Francisco
may or may not work for the White House's We the People users.

That's why it is vital for those who attempt to open government to share
their stories far and wide.  What has worked? What has failed? Why? Good
storytelling is even more critical now, because that’s the only way the
uninitiated — pretty much everyone — will be able to understand, support
and adopt this movement as their own.

Our goal is to take a little bit of the hassle out of being a citizen and a
public official. We believe users deserve to be met where they are. Tools
should be designed to help users do their jobs more efficiently and
effectively today. That’s how "open government" will stealthily morph into
"how government works." Success means you can’t imagine the tech not being
there.

Rep. Darrell Issa
(R-CA)<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=7f4cc78170&e=66a5882ce3>is
the chairman and cofounder of the board at theOpenGov
Foundation<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=246881e64d&e=66a5882ce3>
.

Read the full article on the SUNLIGHT FOUNDATION BLOG
>><http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=3a4d7714c6&e=66a5882ce3>

*W*<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=28c80d777d&e=66a5882ce3>
*atch the PROJECT MADISON VIDEO
>>*<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=d6182732b6&e=66a5882ce3>
 ------------------------------

*About The OpenGov Foundation*

*We're a scrappy little non-profit, non-partisan outfit working to open
government. That means making it easier for people to access and use as
much government information as possible. We believe innovative technology
can help deliver a government that listens, works for its citizen-users,
and learns from them. We are dedicated to putting better data and better
tools in more hands. Our goal is to make or adapt those tools to be easy to
use, efficient, scalable and free. Democracy means everyone should have
chance to be a hands-on contributor.
 Click here to learn more about Team
OpenGov<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=22a1ae6ec3&e=66a5882ce3>
 and click here to get your hands dirty with
us<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=ad8f444599&e=66a5882ce3>
.*
          <http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=ca6e30e46d&e=66a5882ce3>follow
on Twitter<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=f1a12537bb&e=66a5882ce3>
<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=68b5460798&e=66a5882ce3>|
friend on Facebook<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=8594d31f6e&e=66a5882ce3>|
forward
to a friend<http://us6.forward-to-friend.com/forward?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=17eb8181a1&e=66a5882ce3>
 <?subject=Fw%3A%20How%20%23CrowdLaw%20Killed%20SOPA%3A%20An%20Interview%20With%20Seamus%20Kraft%20And%20Chris%20Birk%20Of%20The%20Open%20Gov%20Foundation>
   Copyright ©2013 OpenGov Foundation. All rights reserved.
 unsubscribe from this
list<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=bb42d3f059&e=66a5882ce3&c=17eb8181a1>|
update
subscription preferences<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage2.com/profile?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=bb42d3f059&e=66a5882ce3>|
view
email in browser<http://us6.campaign-archive2.com/?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=17eb8181a1&e=66a5882ce3>








   Sent to carolina em eff.org — *why did I get
this?*<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage1.com/about?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=bb42d3f059&e=66a5882ce3&c=17eb8181a1>
unsubscribe from this
list<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=bb42d3f059&e=66a5882ce3&c=17eb8181a1>|
update
subscription preferences<http://opengovfoundation.us6.list-manage2.com/profile?u=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&id=bb42d3f059&e=66a5882ce3>
OpenGov Foundation · P.O. Box 3672 · Washington, DC 20027  [image: Email
Marketing Powered by
MailChimp]<http://www.mailchimp.com/monkey-rewards/?utm_source=freemium_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=monkey_rewards&aid=9d450bf68b3df1185fc9f62b2&afl=1>




-- 
*Carolina Rossini*
http://carolinarossini.net/
+ 1 6176979389
*carolina.rossini em gmail.com*
skype: carolrossini
@carolinarossini
-------------- Próxima Parte ----------
Um anexo em HTML foi limpo...
URL: <http://lists.okfn.org/pipermail/okfn-br/attachments/20130318/069ba9ad/attachment-0002.html>

Mais detalhes sobre a lista de discussão okfn-br