Note:

This is the audio version of an online event, in which a couple of the speakers refer to visual elements. If you’d like to see the websites, etc, that they mention, please see the video of the event at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvJVCgBprwY.

Details:

Across the world, there are many websites and apps that help citizens to better understand how their democracies work, and what their elected representatives are doing on their behalf.

Historically, one of the main ways these tools could measure their impact was by tracking their visitor numbers and page views via website analytics tools.

However, across the world, civic and pro-democracy tech projects are finding that citizens can’t, or no longer, directly visit their websites and apps. They’re either restricted by data packages that only allow them to use social media sites, or are finding out information via AI chatbots or social media, rather than directly visiting sites and apps.

This shift can make it harder than ever to measure the reach and impact of pro-democracy projects and tools. Traditional website analytics no longer tell the full story, leaving some projects struggling to demonstrate their effectiveness—and, as a result, to secure the funding needed to sustain vital democratic services.

At this TICTeC gathering, we hear directly from practitioners running civic and pro-democracy tech initiatives from across the world. They share the strategies they’re using to reach people where they are, ensure their services remain accessible and relevant, and find new ways to track impact in this changing digital landscape.

Ana Arevadze from ForSet in Georgia talks about their work with social media influencers to inform and educate Georgian youth on voting and democratic information.

Ufuoma Nnamdi-Udeh from Enough is Enough Nigeria shares how they have leveraged social media, chatbots, and messaging services through their ShineYourEye platform to provide citizens with accurate democratic information and improve access to elected representatives.

Joseph Tahinduka from ParliamentWatch Uganda speaks about working with infomediaries such as local radio and journalists to get parliamentary information to a wider audience, as well as their usage of social media and messaging apps.

More information

This is a TICTEC Communities of Practice session. Find out more about TICTeC at https://tictec.mysociety.org/.

Sign up for TICTeC updates at https://tictec.mysociety.org/events/ or subscribe to updates about all mySoicety activities by telling us what you’re interested in at http://eepurl.com/gOEVFj.

Transcript

Alex Parsons 0:01 Hi everyone. I’m Alex Parsons.

Alex Parsons 0:02 I’m the Democracy Lead and senior researcher at mySociety. Thank you for joining us here for this TICTeC community gathering. (more…)