Spotlight: Reaching beyond the usual crowd
/Spotlight: Reaching beyond the usual crowd
One of the key benefits of digital participation platforms is that they allow asynchronous participation. This means people can participate whenever it's convenient for them. Compared to public meetings, which are often scheduled at inconvenient times for some demographics, digital platforms are "always on." (If you do run in-person meetings, consider varying the time of day at which they're held so that different groups of people have a chance to attend.)
This was one of SlashRoots's main considerations as the group worked to improve the implementation of Jamaica’s Constituency Development Fund (dedicated to human and infrastructure development at the local level). Public meetings generally attracted only senior citizens, with students and working professionals unable or unwilling to attend sessions held in the middle of weekdays. By using a digital participation platform, SlashRoots was able to give these groups a way to submit their suggestions for consideration. This resulted in 34 community development suggestions, including 10 submitted by members of the hearing-impaired and blind communities.
The platform also made what was usually top-down spending of public funds more inclusive. Although the number of accounts (required for voting) and votes cast were roughly the same as attendance at in-person consultations, people participating via the digital platform were able to more easily prioritize and allocate spending on suggested projects.
SlashRoots connected local engagement to Jamaica's Constituency Development Fund process to improve public involvement and monitorial oversight of the process. Screenshot courtesy SlashRoots.