scholarly journals Your Comments Here: Contextualizing Technologies, Seeking Records and Supporting Transparency for Citizen Engagement

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Grant Hurley
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Dynamic Processes ◽  
Citizen Engagement ◽  
The World ◽  
Decision Making Processes

Today, governments the world over are opening decision-making processes to citizen engagement as an aspect of open government. Citizen engagement initiatives may range from making information available and seeking feedback, to highly dynamic processes that transfer authority to communities and individuals. As part of these initiatives, governments are actively using digital technologies to gather, analyze, and store citizen input; activities that in turn create an array of records. My paper surveys a range of digital technologies used by Canadian citizen engagement case initiatives. In linking technologies, recordkeeping and citizen engagement, I present the combined frameworks of the IAP2 Spectrum and archival diplomatics as one method of understanding how recordkeeping and citizen engagement frameworks may be joined. I conclude with a discussion on defining and locating the records of citizen engagement initiatives and how records and recordkeeping may support transparency and trust in citizen engagement.

scholarly journals Enabling Relationships with Nature in Cities

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 4394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Colding ◽  
Matteo Giusti ◽  
Andreas Haga ◽  
Marita Wallhagen ◽  
Stephan Barthel
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Environmental Psychology ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Urban Ecosystems ◽  
Policy Recommendations ◽  
Urban Resilience ◽  
Environmental Learning ◽  
The World ◽  
Decision Making Processes

Limited exposure to direct nature experiences is a worrying sign of urbanization, particularly for children. Experiencing nature during childhood shapes aspects of a personal relationship with nature, crucial for sustainable decision-making processes in adulthood. Scholars often stress the need to ‘reconnect’ urban dwellers with nature; however, few elaborate on how this can be achieved. Here, we argue that nature reconnection requires urban ecosystems, with a capacity to enable environmental learning in the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains, i.e., learning that occurs in the head, heart and hands of individuals. Drawing on environmental psychology, urban ecology, institutional analysis and urban planning, we present a theoretical framework for Human–Nature Connection (HNC), discuss the importance of nurturing HNC for children, elaborate on the role of property-rights and the importance of creating collective action arenas in cities for the promotion of urban resilience building. As values and environmental preconceptions underly environmental behavior, there are limits to achieving HNC in cities, as presumptive sentiments toward nature not always are positive. We end by discussing the role of new digital technologies in relation to HNC, and conclude by summarizing the major points brought forward herein, offering policy recommendations for HNC as a resilience strategy that can be adopted in cities throughout the world.

Evolution of e-participation in Greek local government

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Constantina Costopoulou ◽  
Maria Ntaliani ◽  
Filotheos Ntalianis
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Big Data ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Local Community ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
The Impact

Local governments are increasingly developing electronic participation initiatives, expecting citizen involvement in local community affairs. Our objective was to assess e-participation and the extent of its change in local government in Greece. Using content analysis for 325 Greek municipal websites, we assessed e-participation status in 2017 and 2018 and examined the impact of change between these years. The assessment regards two consecutive years since the adoption of digital technologies by municipalities has been rapid. The main findings show that Greek local governments have made significant small- to medium-scale changes, in order to engage citizens and local societies electronically. We conclude that the integration of advanced digital technologies in municipalities remains underdeveloped. We propose that Greek municipalities need to consider incorporating new technologies, such as mobile apps, social media and big data, as well as e-decision making processes, in order to eliminate those obstacles that hinder citizen engagement in local government. Moreover, the COVID-19 outbreak has highlighted the need for enhancing e-participation and policymakers’ coordination through advanced digital technologies.

scholarly journals Corruption and Combating Corruption: A Framework for Peace, Human Rights and Sustainable Development in Post-Independent Africa

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 9-17
Author(s):  
Eric Che Muma
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Sustainable Peace ◽  
The World ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Global Peace ◽  
The Way

Abstract Since the introduction of democratic reforms in post-independent Africa, most states have been battling corruption to guarantee sustainable peace, human rights and development. Because of the devastating effects of corruption on the realisation of peace, human rights and sustainable development, the world at large and Africa in particular, has strived to fight against corruption with several states adopting national anti-corruption legislation and specialised bodies. Despite international and national efforts to combat corruption, the practice still remains visible in most African states without any effective accountability or transparency in decision-making processes by the various institutions charged with corruption issues. This has further hindered global peace, the effective enjoyment of human rights and sustainable development in the continent. This paper aims to examine the concept of corruption and combating corruption and its impact on peace, human rights and sustainable development in post-independent Africa with a particular focus on Cameroon. It reveals that despite international and national efforts, corruption still remains an obstacle to global peace in Africa requiring a more proactive means among states to achieve economic development. The paper takes into consideration specific socio-economic challenges posed by corruption and the way forward for a united Africa to combat corruption to pull the continent out of poverty, hunger and instability, and to transform it into a better continent for peace, human rights and sustainable development.

Health Technology Funding Decision-Making Processes Around the World

2011 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 475-495 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tania Stafinski ◽  
Devidas Menon ◽  
Donald J. Philippon ◽  
Christopher McCabe
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Health Technology ◽  
Funding Decision ◽  
The World ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Technology Funding

Ecological modernisation and citizen engagement

2014 ◽  
Vol 34 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 302-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Praveena Rajkobal
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
Environmental Movement ◽  
The State ◽  
Citizen Engagement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Desalination Plant ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Ecological Modernisation

Purpose – Modern environmental governance, especially in developed nations, increasingly embraces ecological modernisation (EM) as a framework for managing environmental resources. EM proposes a political modernisation programme that brings the four institutions the state, private sector, experts and the environmental movement together in addressing challenging environmental issues. The purpose of this paper is to examine the implications of the political modernisation programme on citizen engagement. The paper argues that while citizen engagement through the integration of the environmental movement in decision-making processes is promoted, the prominence given to the state, and science and technology results in a number of issues concerning citizen engagement and more deliberative forms of decision making. Design/methodology/approach – The paper inquires into these issues by building up on the prominent literature in the areas of EM, administrative state, technologically oriented decision making and the case study of the Wonthaggi desalination plant. Findings – While citizen engagement through the integration of the environmental movement in decision-making processes is promoted by some EM theorists, other aspects of EM theory give prominence to the state, and science and technology. The paper asserts that citizens’ voices tend to be overwhelmed in governance projects where the main focus is on capitalist values and scientific knowledge and a main role is played by the state and experts. Originality/value – The paper is an original work done based on the reviews of literature conducted in the relevant areas and research on the Wonthaggi desalination plant to address the question of the realisability of citizen engagement in EM-based environmental governance spaces.

scholarly journals A Turing test for free will

2012 ◽  
Vol 370 (1971) ◽  
pp. 3597-3610 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seth Lloyd
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Quantum Mechanics ◽  
Free Will ◽  
Decision Maker ◽  
Turing Test ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Theory Of Computation ◽  
Alan Turing ◽  
The World ◽  
Decision Making Processes

Before Alan Turing made his crucial contributions to the theory of computation, he studied the question of whether quantum mechanics could throw light on the nature of free will. This paper investigates the roles of quantum mechanics and computation in free will. Although quantum mechanics implies that events are intrinsically unpredictable, the ‘pure stochasticity’ of quantum mechanics adds randomness only to decision-making processes, not freedom. By contrast, the theory of computation implies that, even when our decisions arise from a completely deterministic decision-making process, the outcomes of that process can be intrinsically unpredictable, even to—especially to—ourselves. I argue that this intrinsic computational unpredictability of the decision-making process is what gives rise to our impression that we possess free will. Finally, I propose a ‘Turing test’ for free will: a decision-maker who passes this test will tend to believe that he, she, or it possesses free will, whether the world is deterministic or not.

scholarly journals A gestão democrática da escola pública em contextos de reformas educacionais locais: Estudo comparado entre Brasil e Espanha

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
pp. 2
Author(s):  
Neusa Chaves Batista ◽  
Miguel A. Pereyra
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Collective Action ◽  
School Management ◽  
Educational Policies ◽  
Legitimate Authority ◽  
Educational Legislation ◽  
The Public ◽  
Democratic Management ◽  
The World ◽  
Decision Making Processes

Democratic management as a way of organizing the public school can be translated in its contemporary historicity as a collective action that demands changes in the autocratic and hierarchical structure of the school unit. In this article, we analyze the process of constructing legislation on democratic school management in contexts of local educational reforms, based on Brazilian and Spanish cases. Methodologically, we understand educational legislation as documents that incorporate discourses with legitimate authority, especially of the State, and that spread conceptions of the world as a result of disputes over hegemony in the field of educational policies. In terms of results, our study points out that throughout the process of producing legislation for the democratic management of schools, the two countries showed advances and setbacks regarding the specification of the school actors who should participate in decision-making processes, as well as the instances of participation in school management. 

scholarly journals Georeferenced Open Data and Augmented Interactive Geo-Visualizations as Catalysts for Citizen Engagement

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thore Fechner ◽  
Christian Kray
Keyword(s):  
Digital Divide ◽  
Open Data ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Citizen Engagement ◽  
Space And Time ◽  
Online Tools ◽  
The World ◽  
Ict Tools ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Large Groups

Citizen engagement figures prominently on political agendas around the world. In this context, high hopes are pinned to open government, open data and ICT tools. At the same time, there are fears of a widening digital divide, where large groups of society are in danger of being excluded from societal processes, for example due to having difficulties in using the online tools provided. In this paper, we propose an approach that has the potential to address many key issues in this context (e.g. accessibility, complexity, engagement). It relies on space and time as common integrators, and uses interactive augmented geo-visualizations to facilitate citizen engagement. We report on key challenges that need to be overcome to realize this approach and on initial progress towards this goal. We describe a set of prototypical tools aimed at supporting citizen engagement in the envisioned way, and discuss the approach as well as its potentials, issues and challenges in detail. Initial experiences and results indicate that our approach is not only technically feasible but it can also empower citizens to more effectively engage with societal and governmental processes.

Opportunities and Challenges of Visualization and Open Data in Food Security Analysis

2019 ◽  
pp. 748-772
Author(s):  
Thida Chaw Hlaing ◽  
Julian Prior
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Food Security ◽  
Security Analysis ◽  
Open Data ◽  
Global Level ◽  
Statistical Literacy ◽  
The World ◽  
The Future ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Decision Making Processes

Statistical literacy presents many aspects about food security in the world. It highlights weaknesses, it creates awareness of threats in current situations, helps overcome challenges and creates opportunities for the future. Statistical data analysis enables existing food security interventions and programs to be reviewed and revised, and this better understanding of current situations enables more authoritative and relevant decision-making processes for the future. Statistical literacy involves skills and expertise in data description and interpretation (in words as well as in numbers) to name, explore and amend beliefs, opinions and suggestions. It helps decision-making processes about food security in a sub-nation, nation and region, as well as the world. This chapter will demonstrate the importance of open data and visualization, including its challenges and opportunities, in the food security context at national and global level to make decision-makers aware of the need to enhance their capacity for and investment in statistical literacy.

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