The Global Innovation Series is supported by BMW i, a new concept dedicated to providing mobility solutions for the urban environment. It delivers more than purpose-built electric vehicles — it delivers smart mobility services. Visit bmw-i.com or follow @BMWi on Twitter.  Governments have been harnessing consumer-facing technology to reach out to their citizens in some very interesting ways.  In the spaces between location-aware technology, web services, mobile apps and social media tools, there is a ton of opportunity for governments — from small cities to entire nations — to do their jobs with more efficiency and transparency.  In this post, we’ve tapped two experts in this precise field. Kurt Daradics is a co-founder of CitySourced, a startup that gives governments tools to collect information and alerts from citizens via a mobile app. We also chatted with Abhi Nemani, Director of Strategy and Communications at Code for America, a nonprofit that custom-builds open-source web and mobile applications for a select group of governments each year. Here’s what they had to say about technology and government.  First of all, Daradics points out just how new the field is. “It’s the wild west of civic engagement, and the playing field is being leveled with a perfect storm of pervasive broadband, mature GIS (Geographic Information Systems), web services, and social media, plus all the open APIs and data sets that are now available. On top of that you add mobility, which is not only a new channel, but a new group of users. Nielsen data indicates that low income and minorities are twice as likely to engage via mobile phone vs. desktop ISP.”  When he puts it that way, it’s easy to see how the perfect combinations between tech and government are just now being created.  Nemani says a lot of the trend is due to a proactive attitude from governments, too. “In the past, it was more citizens themselves pushing for the use of technology, but now governments are catching on and stepping up, so there’s a developing ecosystem of governments and citizens working together.”  Data-driven policy is a trend Daradics sees playing a big role in government’s near future. Daradics cites tools such as Esri Community Analyst, a demographic data and planning mapping software, as giving officials usable information for making important decisions.  And Nemani says open data, wherein any developer can access huge amounts of civic information, is a huge trend right now, as well. “Want to see it at work? Just pull up any of the apps you’re probably using to track the bus or subway.”  In the wake of a global recession, just about everyone’s looking for ways to cut costs. Nemani says technology is a necessary way to accomplish this for governments.  “Opening up avenues to participation is crucial for governments to adapt both new technology and the budget crisis. Leveraging technology is not just a nice or ‘cool’ thing to do — it’s critical if governments are going to cut costs while still providing core services.”  He cites the impressive and money-saving IT Dashboard as a great example of open-sourced, government-focused tech that has the power to save governments (and even larger corporations) millions or even billions of dollars.  But not all of the tools governments can use are custom-built solutions. “Just look what’s happening in the Middle East right now as a result of Twitter and Facebook,” Daradics notes. “And these services are completely free.  “The easiest and least expensive ways for governments to help is to communicate with their residents in the same ways that we all now communicate with our friends and family.”  “We’re trying to make government more like the Internet,” says Nemani. “More participatory, user-driven and efficient. But it’s more than just about the apps we build. We’re building a geek army.”  Nemani continues that empowered and involved citizens can and will make a difference. And governments can take full advantage of those same citizens to change the way they work “from the inside out.” He says hacking away on apps for the public good is “a new kind of public service.”  “This work has to be done,” Daradics concludes. “Folks are so apathetic and don’t participate [because] they don’t get the positive feedback that their contribution is meaningful or makes a difference. … By leveraging the latest technologies, we’re taking the friction out of civic engagement. Our mission is complete when we’ve sufficiently moved the needle on folks taking leadership roles in their communities.  “It’s time to wake up the neighborhood.”  The Global Innovation Series is supported by BMW i, a new concept dedicated to providing mobility solutions for the urban environment. It delivers more than purpose-built electric vehicles; it delivers smart mobility services within and beyond the car. Visit bmw-i.com or follow @BMWi on Twitter.  Are you an innovative entrepreneur? Submit your pitch to BMW i Ventures, a mobility and tech venture capital company.  images courtesy of iStockphoto, ryccio
Think social media and location apps are just for consumers? Think again - they're transforming the way cities & countries do government.