Society for Civic Tech
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| Society for Civic Tech | |
|---|---|
| Name | Society for Civic Tech |
| Formation | 2009 |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, California |
| Fields | Technology, Civic engagement, Public policy |
| Leader title | Executive Director |
Society for Civic Tech is a nonprofit organization that promotes the use of open data and civic technology to increase public participation in public policy and e-government initiatives. The organization has engaged with a variety of nonprofit organizations, municipal governments, and technology companys to develop tools and foster networks across North America, Europe, and other regions. It connects practitioners from communities such as Code for America, Open Knowledge Foundation, and Mozilla Foundation while engaging with events like South by Southwest and Civic Hacking Day.
History
The organization was founded in 2009 amid a surge of interest in open data and digital activism following initiatives by Barack Obama and municipal reform movements in New York City and San Francisco. Early collaborators included Sunlight Foundation, Data.gov, and members of the Code for America brigade network; contemporaries and interlocutors included Open Government Partnership and World Bank open data programs. It expanded during the 2010s alongside projects from GitHub, Google Civic Innovation, and civic groups responding to crises such as the Hurricane Katrina recovery discourse and the 2011 London riots civic responses. Leadership transitions reflected ties to academic centers like Harvard Kennedy School and Stanford University labs, and partnerships with foundations including Ford Foundation and Knight Foundation.
Mission and activities
The Society aims to strengthen civic participation through technology by supporting open source software projects, promoting open data standards, and training civic technologists for roles in municipal government and nonprofit organizations. Activities range from organizing hackathons in partnership with Mozilla Foundation and Code for America brigades to publishing reports with contributors from Harvard Kennedy School and MIT Media Lab. The Society participates in policy dialogues with institutions such as the U.S. Digital Service, European Commission, and United Nations initiatives on digital governance, and contributes to standards discussions with bodies like the Open Government Partnership and the World Wide Web Consortium.
Organizational structure
The governance model combines a board of directors with advisory panels drawing members from academic institutions, technology companys, and nonprofit organizations. The executive team coordinates volunteer brigades comparable to Code for America's local chapters and maintains working groups reminiscent of the Open Knowledge Foundation task forces. Funding streams have included grants from foundations such as Knight Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, and Rockefeller Foundation, corporate sponsorship from firms like Microsoft and Google, and project grants from multilateral organizations including the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme.
Programs and initiatives
The Society runs fellowship programs modeled after the U.S. Digital Service and Presidential Innovation Fellows, mentorship tracks influenced by Mozilla Open Leaders, and accelerator programs similar to initiatives at Civic Hall and ThoughtWorks. Key initiatives have included open data portals patterned on Data.gov and data.gov.uk, civic app challenges comparable to Apps for Democracy, and capacity-building workshops akin to offerings from Open Knowledge Foundation and Sunlight Foundation. It has curated toolkits referencing projects from CKAN, Socrata, OpenStreetMap, and Transitland and hosted conferences that convene participants from South by Southwest, International Open Data Conference, and regional forums like European Data Forum.
Partnerships and collaborations
The Society has collaborated with municipal partners such as the City and County of San Francisco, New York City agencies, and regional governments across California, Ontario, and Scotland. Internationally it has partnered with organizations including the World Bank, United Nations Development Programme, Open Government Partnership, and academic centers like Harvard Kennedy School and Stanford University. Corporate collaborations have involved Microsoft Civic Tech initiatives, Google Civic Innovation, and tooling contributions from GitHub and Amazon Web Services. It has coordinated jointly with nonprofits and media entities such as the Sunlight Foundation, Open Knowledge Foundation, ProPublica, and The New York Times on data journalism and transparency projects.
Impact and reception
The Society’s projects have influenced local procurement of open source software and the adoption of open data policies in jurisdictions inspired by models from Data.gov and the Open Government Partnership. Evaluations of its fellowships and accelerators cite outcomes similar to those reported by Code for America and the U.S. Digital Service, including placement of technologists in public-sector roles and the launch of civic tools used by residents. Critics from media outlets like The Guardian and scholars affiliated with London School of Economics have debated the efficacy of tech-centric approaches versus structural reform, while supporters from Knight Foundation and practitioners in municipal governments point to measurable increases in transparency and civic engagement. Its legacy is often discussed alongside movements represented by Code for America, Open Knowledge Foundation, Sunlight Foundation, and civic innovation programs at Harvard Kennedy School and MIT Media Lab.