We believe that governments can make better use of scarce technology dollars by working together to solve common problems. We’re helping them share their solutions, knowledge, and best practices.
Civic technology experts have recognized the benefits of sharing technology among governments and institutions. However, instances of successful collaboration and sharing are still few and far between, in part because there is no easy, structured way to share knowledge about this software, let alone the software itself. There is no one place to go to look for civic software that cities need, and no roadmap to share what they have.
Enter the Civic Commons. As infrastructure for the open government movement, Civic Commons is a community-edited resource to find out what’s working, where.
Ok, so what is it, really?
Civic Commons is an information product, made up of the Marketplace, Engagement Commons, and the Wiki:
The Marketplace
Think of it like a community-driven civic app store: the Marketplace project will foster the creation and growth of a community of civic technologists sharing not only information about the applications they use and their experiences with them, but also the very application code. By connecting the nation’s best civic innovators, we will stimulate better IT decision making and the reuse of civic code across the country.
Engagement Commons
Engagement Commons is a curated sub-site of the Civic Commons Marketplace focused specifically on technology for civic engagement. Within the scope of Engagement Commons is any tool that governments can use, endorse, or support to increase engagement with their citizens. Engagement Commons is a collaborative resource that both catalogs technology for engagement and highlights stories of real-world success. City officials and civic leaders can leverage the platform to identify, evaluate, and deploy the right apps to engage their communities.
When it comes to civic technology we know there is an answer to your question out there somewhere. The Civic Commons Wiki is the most robust resource on open data, open source software, and open government, including a curated legal guide on navigating the procurement processes for open source software. To help fill in the gaps, there is also a growing network of open government advocates both within and outside government that you can engage through our active network and discussion forums — see the community page for more.
And who built this?
Civic Commons was built in partnership with Code for America and OpenPlans, but it is sustained and maintained by the community. The development team has from time to time consulted on open government projects, but their focus now is entirely on the product.
How?
Civic Commons is thankful for the generous support of the John S. and James L Knight Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Omidyar Network and O’Reilly Media.