Since the first spin of the wheel, civilization has been implementing new technologies for the sake of the betterment of humanity.  The development of a written language allowed for messages to be sent, unspoken.  Telephones brought the spoken word to audiences near and far.  And in the twentieth century, the development of the radio, television, and internet brought ideas from across the world directly into our homes.

With such great advancements in technology, society has benefited as much as it has been awed. Though the power of these technologies is immense, you should not hesitate to use them to share your messages.  Modern technology may be your best friend in you battle to keep citizens in your community engaged in the government that they represent.  The following resources relay the benefits of technology for local government professionals:

• In the article “7 Emerging Trends in Citizen Engagement,” you can learn about the very interesting way that San Diego is engaging its citizens.
• Hilary Badger’s blog post about social media and citizen engagement highlights the important distinction between the awareness and influence of your social media strategy.
• Peter Dunn recently attended a panel hosted by the Brookings Institution, and wrote about the lessons that he learned in a great blog post about the potential for social media to influence civic participation.
• You can learn about the initiatives of some of your peers in this recent question about the platforms that managers use to engage their communities; and you can learn all of their engagement secrets in this question.
• In an August 2013 issue of PM Magazine, Evelina Moulder offers a great analysis of the best ways to engage your online constituency.

If you would like more advice on engaging your community, feel free to ask us, or check out the Knowledge Network’s Technology, Citizen Engagement or Internet topic pages.

Aloha,

James Davidson

ICMA's Knowledge Network Intern

jdavidson@icma.org