From grassroots organizations to civic groups, government boards and nonprofits, there’s no shortage of organizations working to make Chicago a better place. But for Chicagoans who want to contr

Efficiency; resilience; growth; vitality. These are all characteristics that cities desire, and that are regularly cited as the objectives of Smarter City programmes and other forward-looking initiatives. But, though it is less frequently stated, a more fundamental objective underlies all of these: fairness. The Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz has written extensively about the need to prioritise…

This spring, Code for San Jose turned three years old. In addition to celebrating with craft cocktails at a favorite local bar, we made time to reflect on our successes, struggles and future…

It’s part of the social media giant’s efforts to connected people to government representatives.

In Newspeak House in east London, a loose coalition of young, idealistic ‘political technologists’ are trying to fix broken parts of our electoral system. Can they give voting a digital shot in the arm?

We need places like Civic Hall if we want to continue to bring non-developers into the fray. I think our technology, and our world, will be better for it.

From ‘meeting’ a resident affected by HS2 to ‘cycling’ along a proposed bike lane through the city, VR can have a powerful impact in the real world

Hackathons — and launchpads, as city staffer Andy Viren explains.

Warren Lemmens, the CTO of Nokia Oceania, discusses Australia's emerging smart city landscape — and what the U.S. can learn from it.

How much does Civic Tech extract from and contribute back to commons of open source software? We found out at TICTec. This summer Andrew and I will be speaking at or attending events where we think…

Cybercriminals can shut down multiple city services from a single entry point.

Picture this: a video studio with a green screen that you can book, an array of Raspberry Pi devices, and 3D printers complete with lessons on how to use them.

Want to you calculate your state's transportation spending? How about
identify distressed communities in your area? These mapping tools will help
you do the job.

A strong civic life depends on ALL, not just some, youth participating. The RAYSE Index uses data to identify where investments could be made to improve youth civic engagement.

at the Code for America Summit confirmed it for me: We have come to a critical moment in the history of civic technology. For years now, we’ve told a story about “civic tech” that made it out to be…

Today marks Chi Hack Night’s 250th event and **5 year anniversary**! Yes, we've been doing this for 5 years, and what a ride it’s been! For the occasion, we invited our members, alumni and past presenters to share how Chi Hack Night and it's community has affected or benefited them. We were floored by your responses. It turns out you like us! You really like us!

1. This article contains broad generalizations, and is intended to get some new conversations started. There exists much anecdotal evidence contrary to many of the points below. I’ve also attempted…

Crowdsourcing for Vision Zero planning.

The benefits of a customer-centric strategy aren’t limited to private-sector businesses. Agencies at every level can realize their goals by putting th

On May 17th, UIS presented EngagingApps on a Tech Tuesday session with the National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation. Tech Tuesday is a monthly webinar series that helps dialogue and deliberation practitioners learn about online apps for participation.

Our Code for All partners, including Code for America, Code for Australia, Codeando Mexico and more, welcome Code for Canada to the fold. Learn more a

Find where you fit in the changing world of connected tech.

Students review municipal planning department websites in cities with more than 50,000 people to identify strengths and weaknesses. This post shares examples of the use of websites for information sharing and engagement.

After drawing criticism from the tech community, the city redefines how government app competitions can work efficiently.