New technology to improve the flow for courts

A new computer system has been designed to keep victims of crime up-to-date with the progress of their court case. XHIBIT will cut the time people spend waiting to give evidence in court. It could also save as many as 80,000 police days every year as officers often have to waste hours hanging around before being called to give evidence. Witnesses can now be told to come to court via text message or can track the progress of hearings via the internet. Public display screens in the court building will also feature the latest case status. XHIBIT is now in use at Crown courts in Bristol and Taunton and will soon be rolled-out across England and Wales. Courts minister Christopher Leslie said: "This is a clear example of courts using technology to improve the reality and perception of the criminal justice system. " "It all adds up to a better deal for victims and witnesses in the court process. It is a practical measure that will help make it easier for victims under great pressure."

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Blog to change the government

Ideal Government is a blog/brainstorm hosted by Kable Publishing. Centred on e-government's hoped-for potential for user-centricity, William Heath asks visitors to "Dream a little, and help set out the wish list. Otherwise we might end up with something we did not want." The project has a planned lifespan of four weeks (might be ending soon, so go look now!). Heath will be sending edited highlights to top UK politicians and presenting them to the new UK Government CIO, Ian Watmore.

http://www.idealgovernment.com/index.php/weblog/

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DESIGN/POLITICS/INFORMATION III: MAPPING THE VOTE

After running a phone yesterday on Minnesota public radio tonight the Design Institute Minneaplis holds a debate on the role of design in improving the voting system

In D/P/I III they have brought together leading designers, political activists, social network analysts and information visualization experts from around the United States, to present new ideas for solving the social and technical problems of voting.

They were kind enough to invite us unfortunately we couldn't make it. However those who could are: Michael Frumin, Eyebeam Labs; Zack Rosen, CivicSpace.org; Dori Tunstall, Design for Democracy; and Susan Roth, Virginia Commonwealth University.

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The Voting Booth Redesigned

Parsons School of Design in New York has invited 47 architects, artists and designers to redesign the voting booth.

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Blogging in riksdagen

The popularity of blogging rises again with a bill introduced to the Swedish Parliment proposing that their webpage should be equiped with a blogging function so citizens are able to comment and improve on information.

Tobias Billström writes: "Blogging in riksdagen.se should be a natural thing" and points first and foremost to matters that are published on the webpage like notes, press releases and questions

Via We make money not art

ChrisV | LINK | CITIZENSHIP + OPEN SOURCE | COMMENTS (0) | TRACKBACK (0)

Fax your MP for free

Global : Ideas : Bank - Fax your MP for free, and be directly involved in democracy

READ MORE..."Fax your MP for free"

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Random register democracy for widespread involvement

There are many and various bodies requiring representation, but it is difficult to get people to apply. If representatives were chosen at random from the electoral register and invited to be on the body it would make them reflect the population in the broadest way possible. It would cut down on cronyism, those who usually put themselves forward, and being limited to people who have the information to apply. All this would promote true democracy.

From an idea posted on the Global Ideas Bank

Markd | LINK | CITIZENSHIP | COMMENTS (0) | TRACKBACK (0)

Freedom of Expression - A National Monument

A public artwork by Laurie Hawkinson, John Malpede, and Erika Rothenberg, entices passersby to voice their thoughts, poetry, grievances, and hopes. Freedom evokes the struggle involved in making change, while reflecting the public's desire to break through mass media and partisan politics where individual voices tend to diminish.

Find it at Foley Square, Lower Manhattan, NYC August 17 - November 13, 2004

Found via We-make-money-not-art.com

ChrisV | LINK | CITIZENSHIP | COMMENTS (0) | TRACKBACK (0)

Design Challenge Closed and Judged

Many thanks to all of you who took us up on our design challenge and entred your redesigned and newly created state-citizen touchpoints. We were very happy with the response to this - our first prototype challenge.

The entries have been judged by our expert panel and the selection will be announced by August 2nd - watch your inboxes.

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Sim Voting

Touching the State's user research raised the issue that potential voters often don't feel they have an objective source of information. By implication, many people aren't confident that they can visualize the potential real-world outcome of their votes. A bit of research on election simulation games, yielded this discussion of current US offerings.

If a games producer that was perceived as being truly objective were to create a sim game based on the various party manifesti, would more gamers be drawn into the process of trying out possible voting strategies, discussing it with their friends, and then voting in reality? And could the experience be made attractive to a wider audience?

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YouMakeUpYourMind

Throughout our user research we've identified the lack of focus on the decision making component on voting. There is little information available on how you should make up your mind or an objective menu of candidates and their offers. YouMakeUpYourMind is a website in development by Martin Vowles that sets out to provide an objective overview of our political partys and what they stand for.

ChrisV | LINK | CITIZENSHIP | COMMENTS (0) | TRACKBACK (0)

House to Home: Bringing Parliament and people together

House to Home is a free, public, interactive exhibition in Westminster Hall. It is open from Monday 12th July to Friday 20th August. Visitors will be inspired by the principle of democracy, educated as to how our parliament system works, and asked to consider how their deeper involvement could further enrich and rejuvenate our democratic society.
The exhibition site will be launched on the 12th July.
http://www.housetohomelive.com/

JennieW | LINK | CITIZENSHIP | COMMENTS (0) | TRACKBACK (0)

Design for Democracy

Design for Democracy, a non-profit corporation, applies all the tools of design to make voting more efficient, more accessible, more practical and more gratifying.
http://www.electiondesign.org/

JennieW | LINK | CITIZENSHIP | COMMENTS (0) | TRACKBACK (0)

Accelerated Democracy

What might happen when technology goes further into the realm of voting?
The Accelerated Democracy project is a series of four scenarios rooted in trends in American voting that are already happening and look likely to continue into the future.
http://www.accelerateddemocracy.net/

JennieW | LINK | CITIZENSHIP | COMMENTS (0) | TRACKBACK (0)

Designs on Democracy - reinventing the town hall

The Designs on Democracy competition forms part of a wider project exploring the role that design can play in deepening democracy and promoting citizen involvement in decision making.
http://www.designsondemocracy.org.uk/

JennieW | LINK | CITIZENSHIP | COMMENTS (0) | TRACKBACK (0)