mySociety

Global system for national citizens to write to their elected representatives

FROM: Duane Raymond

What NEED does this meet?
Those of us in the US, UK or Canada may not realise it - but in countries around the world there is a scarcity of systems which enable people to email/fax their elected representatives (i.e. Member of Parliament, congress person, senator, MEP). Enabling people to raise global issues locally would help a wide range of concerns influence national and local politicians. For global issues like climate change and unfair trade, this local influence globally is critical.

This meets the needs of people around the world to have the same online access to their elected representatives as we have in the US, UK or Canada.

What is the APPROACH?
In each country, these systems are currently developed nationally - meaning there is no one place to which anyone can turn to engage their elected representatives. This makes coordinating a global campaign more difficult.

This proposal is for a global web site / system where local campaigners anywhere can look up their elected representatives and fax/email them. It could be used by individual citizens, small dispersed groups or medium/large campaigning groups coordinating a global campaign.

For example an individual in Malaysia could look up their MP, a small campaigning group with contacts in Argentina, Mexico and Ghana could point their supporters to the site to email their MPs or a large NGO with supporters in 100 countries could direct their supporters to the same site so all have the ability to write to their representative locally.

What are the BENEFITS to people?
People anywhere in the world would have equal access to their elected representatives. This would deepen their engagement with democracy and make their representatives more accountable. It would make people's lives easier because they wouldn't have to hunt down and assemble the information for communicating with their elected representatives themselves - they would just be able to get on with communicating with them.

What is the COMPETITION?
Most parliaments around the world have a web site with representative names & contact details. However these are not always easy to find except by experienced web surfers/activists. In the few most developed countries, third party services exist - but these too are not always easy to find.

Having a global service means activists can tell each other where to act regardless of what country they are each in.

What BUDGET & LOGISTICS are required?
A basic service could probably be established for £50,000. How much extra it takes depends on the chosen solution. If the system needs to get the data from authorities around the world - this will likely cost more. If the system extracts the information from parliamentary web sites - it will cost less but need updating whenever these parliamentary changes are made. Maintaining fax gateways around the world may also incur some ongoing costs.

As the eActivism manager for a large UK NGO I may be able to get some money allocated as it would help them as well.

Blood Network

FROM: Nishad

What NEED does this meet?
Some years ago, the government of India banned professional blood donors from selling blood (There are people in India who live by selling their blood. The Government banned this practice as as a vast majority of donors were found to have deseases that could be transmitted through blood). Ever since, there's been a shortage of blood needed for emergencies and for patients undergoing surgeries.

What is the APPROACH?
If we could set up a database of blood donors who are willing to donate at short notice. (Donor's Name, Blood Group. Location, Contact Number, Date Last donated) If someone needs blood, the family can just log on to the network and find donors easily.

What are the BENEFITS to people?
Currently people have to search a great deal to find donors in the right blood group. This adds to the trauma that a family is going through at a time of a medical emergency.

What is the COMPETITION?
There are people out here, in India, volunteers who have phone books full of numbers of donors. If these numbers could be collated on to an easily searchable database, things would become very simple.

What BUDGET & LOGISTICS are required?
With pro bono help, I don't think it will be very difficult or expensive.

We will have to reach the network down to small towns and villages, where the shortages are even more of a problem. Here, we may need to provide computers and networking at hospital level so that people can access the database easily.

We will also need to set up a system where we can contact people and urge them to donate blood and get listed on the blood network. This is a "Brick and Motar" (If I can call it) operation, which could become phase three of project.

WorldHelp

FROM: Mark

What NEED does this meet?
This is a way for people to help other people through communication over the Internet. The idea would allow people from one geographic location to post questions/inquiries/answers to those of the same/other region.

What is the APPROACH?
This would be a geographically based approach that would connect individuals/companies with local/international help based on their needs and requirements. Essentially, people would earn points in the system based on the amount of help they provide. These points could then be used to acquire the services of others and so on. Its a win-win situation.

Give a little, take a little, give a little one more time. ~Bob Marley~

What are the BENEFITS to people?
This concept could be used to help people learn how to use a computer, help the environment, cure a cold with natural medicines or just help another needy individual with the skills that they possess. The site could be developed into a variety of categories that are structured in such a way to help people find an answer/help to their problem/situation as quickly as possible.

What is the COMPETITION?
I do not know of any similar services. My idea must win because it is geared to help the largest number of needy people. This could be setup to categorically help those most in need and then progressively work up to help more fortunates souls.

What BUDGET & LOGISTICS are required?
Where there is a will, there is a way.

A forum for exchange of historical geopolitical information.

FROM: Paul Jensen

What NEED does this meet?
It is currently difficult to find information which aids comprehension of how things are changing within different countries - like income levels, health care, education, or consumption or production of food, arms, etc. Although a good deal of information is available it is usually not in a form that invites study and comparison.

For example, a question like "how is the distribution of income changing in Asian countries compared to European countries?" requires hunting up the information from a variety of sources, then trying to discern the trends, and then creating additional information to convey the analysis.

I'd like to see a forum created for sharing historical geopolitical information in a form that allows everyone to use the data and create their own data files to share in a manner similar to the way a digital music file can be created and shared now.

What is the APPROACH?
Historical information for a given quantity can be represented by a standard spreadsheet with a few common headings - like the attributes available for music files - that allow tools to visualize the information and compute new spreadsheets. For a geopolitical time series, a matrix of the statistic over time and across countries is appropriate.

Tools can then be written to combine several of these into other forms - using the population of each country and the total income for each country to compute per capita income, for example.

There also needs to be a variety of ways to view the information. Seeing the per capita income dynamically change on a animated map, for example, allows overall trends to be quickly grasped.

What are the BENEFITS to people?
Having easy ways of exchanging information that is essential to making informed decisions would likely spur more interest and involvement in decisions that impact all of us.

What is the COMPETITION?
There are lots of the pieces around, and lots of data. But the exchange forms that make wide use possible are not currently available. I know of no Napster-like forum for this type of information.

What BUDGET & LOGISTICS are required?
I have a prototype tool now in place at called Time and Place along with a small collection of files.

What is primarily needed are some great ideas of how to create a forum for this information and how to categorize it for ease of sharing (Genre, Title, Author, etc.). Formalizing the exchange standard is the only task that has wide impact on the other things that need to be done.

Innovative tools are also needed, such as an animated map display. Once a few basic tools are available, these tools can be created, tried, discarded, and new ideas explored. The nice part about this type of forum is that with an exchange standard in place, the work can be done independently with little need to coordinate.

Expat Voters

FROM: Simon Pleasants

What NEED does this meet?
There are expatriates from all countries all over the world. Many of them are -- or could be -- eligible to vote in their homeland. It's just that there is no one place for them to visit where they can: (1) find out about their eligibility and how to vote -- whether it's online (unlikey) or at a consulate, or if they have to fly 'home'; (2) register to vote -- either on line or by snail; (3) find out about political party policies 4. communicate with candidates and party reps - asynchronous via email, and live via chat sessions

What is the APPROACH?
Plan: Database driven website. Information clearing house for elections Tailored specifically to expats Visitors register (email address and physical location)for email updates political parties pay to advertise. Approach is unique. Nobody else in the world is doing it. Yet it is likely to succeed, given the relative youth, affluence and global outlook of the primary market.

What are the BENEFITS to people?
(1) Democratic enablement and re-enfranchisement in a globalising world. (2) Increased relevance and communication by political parties, with people they have not before been able to reach with any degree of efficiency. (3) Cool!

What is the COMPETITION?
None. Governments and political parties around the world are only just getting switched on to the idea that they can benefit from communicating effectively with expats. There are no other websites around that are set up to exploit the possibilities of the new environment as it opens up.

What BUDGET & LOGISTICS are required?
I've no idea on the money side of things. I'm a 'concept' type person. Database-driven websites are not cheap, expecially ones that could get huge. However, good money could be made in sponsorship and advertising on the back of the intensity of focus that comes sweeping along with an election.