3 March 2003

Building the eDemocracy Bridge

By Rebecca Newton, Director of Community Development and Education for CommunityPeople.net

It took the telephone nearly 75 years to connect more than 50 million people. In comparison, the World Wide Web has accomplished the same feat in the space of just five years.

The rapid growth of internet connectivity disguises the fact that many citizens - and entire communities - are largely bypassed by what we once quaintly called the "information superhighway". Those most likely to find themselves on the wrong side of this digital divide include typically citizens aged 50 years and above, low-income households and people with physical or emotional disabilities.

A report published by the National Audit Office (NAO) on 20 February 2003, highlights that Government and its agencies need to contend with socially-excluded groups by being more proactive to tackle the dangers of the digital divide.

One clear-cut but effective solution may be in government officials actively participating in and promoting eDemocracy. Simple presence and acknowledgement of publicly-voiced concerns can be a powerful machine. Besides being a convenient form of mass communication, online forums are more cost-efficient, timely, and far reaching than offline public forums, though online and offline public forums should not be mutually exclusive.

Over and above obtaining (and using) e-mail addresses, government officials would do a great service to the public and themselves by embracing online eDemocracy communities and learning to use community tools. Taking this step is essential in the success of the e-services initiative to bridge the gap between the wired and the mired.

Online interaction requires basic skills such as reading, typing and understanding netiquette (online etiquette). If my 72-year-old mother in North Yorkshire can use Instant Messaging Services to communicate, MPs can use online community tools as well. And with mounting numbers of web-savvy young people online, learning basic online facilitation skills could boost MP's political careers. The good news for politicians is that a majority of the UK's young people are well versed in using the net - it has been integrated into their everyday lives. This net-savvy generation, of course, represents tomorrow's electorate.

Moderating online community groups is not rocket science by any stretch of the imagination, but does require proven, experienced instruction and hands-on application. Online facilitation and moderation courses are offered on practically every virtual corner of the Internet. Web courses offer the added convenience of learning facilitation and moderation skills at your own pace from anywhere in the world, provided one has access to the Internet. Today's leaders need to adapt to web communication. We lead by example and government must be first in leading the way for public involvement in e-services. Lead the people and they will follow; digitally excluded groups or otherwise.

Enabling Disabled People

Attending public forums offline is not an option for many citizens, particularly for those with physical or emotional difficulties. The Internet provides a voice to represent equally this group of citizens. Unfortunately as the NAO's report points out, many departmental websites do not yet comply with accessibility standards to meet the special needs of particular groups of citizens, such as those with visual impairment.

Naturally, the question that follows is whether necessary technologies will be made available to excluded communities to promote their involvement? And if so, will the technology prove to be significant and make a difference in the eDemocracy initiative? And finally, how will the involvement of characteristically excluded groups be measured to claim success?

Getting on the Net

Internet access is now available in over 6,000 UK Online centres throughout the UK, but there are usability issues that need to be addressed such as the Internet learning curve, language barriers, technological obstacles and equipment upkeep. In addition to usability issues, the public's interest level in using e-services is questionable. The National Statistics website reports that of the 47 per cent of UK adults who access the web, only 16 per cent of UK adults accessed government information sites for personal use as of October 2002, whereas 80 per cent used the net for e-commerce purposes. Getting the word out shouldn't be a factor in the e-participation problem. The Office of the e-Envoy spent a hefty £2.3 million in an advertising campaign to promote public awareness of e-services. So, apart from the site formatting issues, what other barriers keep people from participating?

Who Minds the Shop?

The current debate as to whether public online forums should be run by the government or the people (a more grassroots approach) has yet to addressed by anyone perceived to be "in charge." This debate may represent one of the problems with engaging the un-engaged. Who minds the eDemocracy shop, why should they mind the shop, and what will be the outcome of public participation online? These questions and many others will need to be addressed before anything resembling success (i.e. monetary return on the investment) can be determined.

In the ukonline.gov.uk Citizen Space forum, one citizen posts "A debate where people who have been elected to represent us listen and react is worth far more than shouting to the wind on some obscure website." They continue by stating, "The Net provides the medium for eDemocracy, the question is whether our Government will use it." Another concerned participant responds with "… perhaps the most crucial in this context, what suggestions do THEY have for outreach to those whom they are alienating, i.e. the dwindling electorate?"

Modest success in public participation has been shown in projects such as Londonvoices.com and Cityneighbours.com, which are citizen-run forums and advocate that eDemocracy public forums should remain citizen-run. "We firmly believe that the e-participation will most be effective if it is promoted through independent forums from the bottom up, rather than from the top down" proclaims a representative from Cityneighbours.com.

Feedback

Lack of leadership in the forums may be another problem. Online forums or discussions need to be "chaired" or moderated, just as offline public discussions. Someone must direct the discussion to keep the focus and to provide response to participants. The eDemocracy participants need to know their voices are heard and action will be taken on their behalf. The consequences of no active moderation or feedback may lead to a diminishing but certain end to the very notion of eDemocracy and perhaps, e-services.

Additional dialogue found in existing online public forums suggests there is a general sense of lack of participation from government officials and elected representatives One Citizen Space forum participant describes their input as "shouting to an empty bucket." This sentiment may not be far from the truth. As of October 2002, 200 MPs at the House of Commons did not have e-mail addresses. It's going to be a hard sell for the government to get online public involvement at any level, excluded groups or otherwise, if the government doesn't e-practice what it e-preaches.

Rebecca Newton is the Director of Community Development and Education for CommunityPeople.net. She can be reached by e-mail at: Rebecca@communitypeople.net

For information on CommunityPeople's online facilitation and moderation courses, please visit : http://www.online-community-training.com