If you have an opinion, 'share' it !
By Editor on Category:Amenities, Art and Culture, Education, Environment, Governance, Health, Heritage, Mobility, Safety, Sanitation, Water
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When you are a student of communication, the first thing you are taught in class is that, “The medium is the message"-Marshall McLuhan.
With popular communication platforms and mediums changing rapidly, the way information is taken and given back to society has seen tremendous momentum. Until not very long ago information was a one-way communication process. Newspapers said what they had to, people consumed the news, and that was all there was to it. Your opinions and thoughts were for you to discuss over dinner or cocktail parties, and through private letters to the editor that may or may not get published-nothing more. But today, with the onset of web 2.0, your opinions thoughts, comments and suggestions have become as valuable as the information itself. For example, today, most newspapers have space provided beneath their articles for comments and discussions, empowering people who possess in-depth knowledge on a variety of subjects to take advantage of the opportunity for active discussions.
Utilizing the power and knowledge of the public has resulted in a new trend -- that of crowdsourcing information. It has changed the way initiatives are being undertaken and businesses run. Every form of communication works on the same traditional principle of having a sender and a receiver, but now that information or feedback can also come inform a cluster of people with similar views and/or experiences, it inevitably gets each user more involved.
Many governments and non-profits have now seen potential in the crowdsourcing model and have designed ways by which it could benefit society.
• Power cuts India, is one such initiative. The website uses social media platforms and smartphone application to collect information on power cuts (location and duration) sent to them by users. This information once collected is available in easy to view formats for public use.
• The city of Vancouver, voted one of the most liveable cities in the world, is now using this model to plan the city’s future transportation needs. In partnership with the City of Vancouver and Greenest City Conservations, `Exploring Vancouver’s Transportation Future’ initiated a discussion on Facebook that surveyed the public’s current thoughts on the city’s transportation needs and collected advice while discussing key issues like health, affordability, economy and most importantly the environment. Making sure they haven’t excluded any part of the population in being able to participate, outdoor events were held in various communities over a period of four weeks, for people to express their views. These initiatives are a win-win situation for the government and the people, since planners are able to optimise this and prioritize budgets that would primarily benefit the public.
Although these are just two examples, they definitely do portray the power of information and technology. In India, many civic agencies like the Delhi Traffic Police, Hyderabad Traffic Police and Bangalore Traffic Police have used this medium to connect on a one-to one basis, and have succeeded in creating a valuable interactive channel for free and easy communication with citizens.
- J.Mumtaz
Do feel free to comment and express your views on the same. Write to us at editor@ijanaagraha.org.
*The opinions expressed in this blog post are that of the author only and not of the organization.
Tags: Amenities, bangalore, Crowd sourcing, Electricity, governance, Powercuts, Traffic police, Vancouver
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