Escaping the Middleman Paradox: Better Reykjavik and Open Policy Innovation
Better Reykjavik is a unique municipal ePetition website that is developed and maintained by a grassroots nonprofit organization, has significant deliberative mechanisms, and has been normalized as an ongoing channel for citizen-government interaction across multiple elected administrations. The pr...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Danube-University Krems
2015-12-01
|
Series: | JeDEM - eJournal of eDemocracy & Open Government |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://jedem.org/index.php/jedem/article/view/386 |
id |
doaj-a0f5ca561e4f4a5d98728d832efdad17 |
---|---|
record_format |
Article |
spelling |
doaj-a0f5ca561e4f4a5d98728d832efdad172020-11-25T02:13:08ZengDanube-University KremsJeDEM - eJournal of eDemocracy & Open Government2075-95172015-12-017210.29379/jedem.v7i2.386Escaping the Middleman Paradox: Better Reykjavik and Open Policy InnovationDerek Lackaff0Elon University Better Reykjavik is a unique municipal ePetition website that is developed and maintained by a grassroots nonprofit organization, has significant deliberative mechanisms, and has been normalized as an ongoing channel for citizen-government interaction across multiple elected administrations. The primary contribution of this study is an analysis of the novel “interface” that was established between the grassroots-developed technical system and the existing political and administrative institutions of policymaking. I begin with a brief overview of the challenges that citizens and governments face in the implementation of ePetition processes. I then suggest that Landemore’s (2012) “democratic reason” and Coleman’s (2008) “autonomous citizenship” constructs provide useful insights into why and how the Better Reykjavik has made a continuing impact on city governance. Next, I present an analysis of the socio-technical process of the initiative’s software development and political integration, showing how this project moved from the fringes of the grassroots towards the center of public and governmental awareness. I conclude by examining Reykjavik’s “new normal” political culture, which illustrates how a bottom-up, fast-moving technical initiative can productively support the slower-moving processes of democratic governance. https://jedem.org/index.php/jedem/article/view/386ePetitionseDemocracyeGovernancecrowdsourcingcocreationopen innovation |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Derek Lackaff |
spellingShingle |
Derek Lackaff Escaping the Middleman Paradox: Better Reykjavik and Open Policy Innovation JeDEM - eJournal of eDemocracy & Open Government ePetitions eDemocracy eGovernance crowdsourcing cocreation open innovation |
author_facet |
Derek Lackaff |
author_sort |
Derek Lackaff |
title |
Escaping the Middleman Paradox: Better Reykjavik and Open Policy Innovation |
title_short |
Escaping the Middleman Paradox: Better Reykjavik and Open Policy Innovation |
title_full |
Escaping the Middleman Paradox: Better Reykjavik and Open Policy Innovation |
title_fullStr |
Escaping the Middleman Paradox: Better Reykjavik and Open Policy Innovation |
title_full_unstemmed |
Escaping the Middleman Paradox: Better Reykjavik and Open Policy Innovation |
title_sort |
escaping the middleman paradox: better reykjavik and open policy innovation |
publisher |
Danube-University Krems |
series |
JeDEM - eJournal of eDemocracy & Open Government |
issn |
2075-9517 |
publishDate |
2015-12-01 |
description |
Better Reykjavik is a unique municipal ePetition website that is developed and maintained by a grassroots nonprofit organization, has significant deliberative mechanisms, and has been normalized as an ongoing channel for citizen-government interaction across multiple elected administrations. The primary contribution of this study is an analysis of the novel “interface” that was established between the grassroots-developed technical system and the existing political and administrative institutions of policymaking. I begin with a brief overview of the challenges that citizens and governments face in the implementation of ePetition processes. I then suggest that Landemore’s (2012) “democratic reason” and Coleman’s (2008) “autonomous citizenship” constructs provide useful insights into why and how the Better Reykjavik has made a continuing impact on city governance. Next, I present an analysis of the socio-technical process of the initiative’s software development and political integration, showing how this project moved from the fringes of the grassroots towards the center of public and governmental awareness. I conclude by examining Reykjavik’s “new normal” political culture, which illustrates how a bottom-up, fast-moving technical initiative can productively support the slower-moving processes of democratic governance.
|
topic |
ePetitions eDemocracy eGovernance crowdsourcing cocreation open innovation |
url |
https://jedem.org/index.php/jedem/article/view/386 |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT dereklackaff escapingthemiddlemanparadoxbetterreykjavikandopenpolicyinnovation |
_version_ |
1724906098361630720 |