Transparency and the Art of Citizen Engagement

Ask anyone you know what their local government does for them, and you’ll be lucky if you don’t hear some form of skepticism or negativity. Because, the truth is, people really don’t know what their government does on a day-to-day basis.

Personally, I didn’t know until I started working at Cartegraph five years ago. Within the first few weeks, I found myself taking stock of everything my city did for me. Smooth roads, working traffic signals, clearly visible signs and pavement markings, clean drinking water, functioning sewers, elaborate stormwater and flood protection systems, emergency response systems – the list of things government addresses goes on and on.

In one large respect, it’s a credit to everyone in government that most people can’t answer the question, “What does local government do for you?” It means that things just work, and no one has to worry about whether or not they’ll have clean drinking water when they turn on the tap to make their morning coffee. People can’t quantify what their government does because they usually don’t have to worry about their infrastructure falling apart around them.

The problem is, this level of comfort is also bad for government. It materializes as a lack of respect or acknowledgement for the hard work men and women of government do every day to keep things safe and functioning. As a result, come budget time, people place little value or emphasis on much needed construction and maintenance programs.

The solution? Local government needs to become more open and transparent. Communication is key in educating the public on work and projects that are required to maintain a particular standard of living. Increasing citizen awareness regarding the challenges facing government will not only lead to greater respect and acknowledgement of the work being done, it will also have an impact on “purse strings” when budget determinations are being made. After all, no one will agree to increases in staff or spending unless they can understand why it’s needed.

To this end, the Gov 2.0 movement and its tenets of openness and transparency will only help government. An increased level of communication can be achieved through both traditional and non-traditional methods. Newsletters, council meetings, neighborhood meetings, school visits, public access television, advertisements, and surveys have been used historically to involve citizens, but with internet and smartphone access increasing at a mind-boggling rate, government must adapt and increase their presence and coverage in these digital mediums.

Government must go on the offensive to communicate. For example, having a web page is great for when people are looking for you. However, much of the online interaction and communication occurs via Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks. The reason private sector wasted little time establishing their own pages and accounts at these sites is because it’s where people have been flocking, and it’s where companies can gain the most coverage and exposure to their customers.

By establishing a more open, transparent, and communicative strategy, government can increase citizen understanding of its issues. As understanding increases, there is greater opportunity for involving citizens in the process and struggles of government. By implementing tools such as Citizen Portals and Dashboards, government takes a step beyond education and communication to involve and engage citizens. These tools allow citizens to see firsthand where issues exist, where effort and dollars are spent, and why increased funding is needed to maintain the expected standard of living.