Taiwan's Crowdsourced Democracy Shows Us How to Fix Social Media

Carl Miller

September 27, 2020 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Taiwan

vTaiwan is a mixed-reality, scaled listening exercise used by the government as a new way to make decisions. The platform provides an online space for citizens to debate and for politicians to listen to. The government lays out political questions, such as regulating Uber or changing time zones, and people can share their feelings, agree and disagree, but divisive statements and trolling are not posted. After debating for a period of time it became apparent that people converged around points of consensus. The government has implemented about a dozen laws and regulations based on the discussions.

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REDMAP

Noel King Karen Duffin

September 23, 2020 |

NPR |

Radio |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States

The Redistricting Majority Project, or REDMAP, used a sophisticated mapping technology and fund-raising strategy to flip 21 states' legislatures from Democratic to Republican control after the 2010 Census. That campaign, which poured money into hundreds of local elections to affect the outcomes, made a major impact on partisan gerrymandering of congressional districts in the following years, and on state policymaking. With the Supreme Court's refusal to block such tactics, the post-2020 Census promises to feature even more partisan manipulation of districts and local elections.

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Old school still rules: Lee-Harvard's high census response rate could teach other neighborhoods a few tricks

Lee Chilcote Conor Morris

September 22, 2020 |

The Land |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Cleveland, Ohio

The high census completion rate in Lee-Harvard, as high as 70%, compared to Cleveland’s 50% as a whole, is the result of regular meetings, pre-pandemic, to educate residents of the benefits of the census and dispel common myths. After the pandemic, volunteers at the community center’s monthly food distribution provided census-related information. A group of retired women, called the Ward 1 Volunteer Navigators, also went door-to-door to make sure everyone got counted. Because many of the residents are long time homeowners, neighbor-to-neighbor relationships also led more residents to complete the census.

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The Shared Spaces program: a crisis-driven experiment that could permanently change San Francisco's urban landscape

Hayden Manseau

September 22, 2020 |

Mission Local |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

The Shared Spaces program is a pandemic-driven initiative that increases outdoor dining space in commercial areas. The initiative made the permit process more user friendly and less expensive. Over 1,200 outdoor dining applications were approved in three months, which is more than the city approved in 2018 and 2019 combined. The increased capacity of outdoor dining seating takes away other public spaces, usually parking and driving space, but the program’s success has helped businesses survive pandemic-related restrictions and officials are assessing the program to maintain it moving forward.

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What Germany teaches the world in a crisis

John Kampfner

September 16, 2020 |

Financial Times |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Germany

Germany has weathered the pandemic with lower illness rates than its neighbors and a relatively strong economy thanks to leadership and responses that have evolved and helped the country thrive in the three decades since reunification. The author of the book "Why the Germans Do It Better: Notes from a Grown-Up Country" reports on the blend of governing, business, and social approaches to challenges – rooted in a concept of "social trust" in the state and society, and a steady, deliberate, caring mindset – that help the country confront a contagion, a recession, or a refugee crisis.

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Wisconsin voters should request ballots now for mail-in voting

Max Witynski

September 02, 2020 |

Wisconsin Watch |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Wisconsin

In the 2020 Wisconsin primary, increased mail-in voting overwhelmed the system and last-minute decisions to vote by mail led to voter confusion. This increased ballot rejections, which can systematically disenfranchise some populations. Learning from these failures, officials will send absentee voting guidelines and applications to 2.6 million voters and use barcodes to track ballots. Due to mail delivery issues, officials also publicly urged voters to request and submit ballots well before the deadline. Critics believe the state could do much more to make voting safe and easy during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Maryland Stands Up Online Grants Application in Just 8 Hours

Andrew Westrope

September 02, 2020 |

Government Technology |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Maryland

The Maryland Department of Information Technology adapted an existing system to quickly distribute small-business grants and loans due to Covid-19. The Maryland OneStop platform, a single site for state licenses, permits, and certifications, was built with an agile approach decoupling front-end user experience from the back-end where the program does the work, which allowed quick front end modifications to launch the loan and grants online when coronavirus hit. The system processed 18,000 applications in the first 3 days and 56,000 within a month. The success was preceded by many years of planning and work.

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The Law Preventing Congress from Sending States the Coronavirus Bill

Alan Greenblatt

August 27, 2020 |

Governing |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) protects states from having to fund federal laws. Prior to its passage, Congress passed bills without worrying about how to fund them, leaving states, cities, and counties to pay for federal mandates. Though UMRA has not been foolproof, 185 unfunded mandates were passed in 1993 before the law was passed and only 15 laws that violate UMRA limits were enacted between 1996 and 2018. Congress is not required to fund the whole bill, which means localities can still be required to pay significant amounts for federally mandated laws.

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Grounded by the pandemic, community groups are working to save Cleveland's Census

Lee Chilcote Conor Morris

August 25, 2020 |

The Land |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Cleveland, Ohio

With 75 micro-grants totaling $200,000, community organizations in Cleveland encourage people to complete the census in innovative ways. The Cleveland Caravan, or La Caravana, is a collaborative effort where trucks play looped messages in English and Spanish over a loud speaker with information on how to fill out the Census, vote, and stay safe during the pandemic. Asian Services in Action and Us Together, a refugee and immigrant services group, conduct outreach and have helped 1,190 and 700 people complete the Census respectively. Despite these efforts, the city's response rate is comparatively low.

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Mexico Is Saving Its Coral Reef From Hurricanes With A One-Of-A-Kind Plan

Alexandra Kirkman

August 24, 2020 |

The Huffington Post |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Mexico, Puerto Morelos, Quintana Roo

To protect the Mesoamerican Reef from the effects of climate change, key stakeholders in Mexico created the world’s first insurance policy to protect a natural asset. The policy provides an immediate infusion of cash in the event of a damaging storm, allowing hotel owners and local governments to quickly repair the reef and prevent further degradation. A volunteer corps of people called the Guardians of the Reef make those repairs. While the insurance policy doesn’t cover pollution or overfishing, this mechanism could work for reefs in other countries to restore and protect threatened ecosystems.

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