The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a $350 billion funding plan aiming at supporting post-COVID-19 recovery, is often dubbed a once-in-a-generation opportunity for state and local governments. While the main premise may be to solve current issues, there is also hope that this ambitious plan can make communities more resilient...
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More and more local governments are engaging their communities in decision-making. Whether it’s to increase trust or create more inclusive policies, community engagement has become a central part of local government and we’ve found that digital engagement with CitizenLab leads to 12x more participation on average. To help local governments...
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For the last year and a half, the world has grappled with a disruptive and deadly pandemic. Earlier this year, the climate crisis reared its head, wiping out entire towns and regions with floods and fires. There’s only way for us to face these trials—by engaging communities and tackling challenges as...
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Six years ago, our co-founders Wietse Van Ransbeeck and Aline Muylaert started CitizenLab. They were new graduates eager to get involved in their local community, but facing the same roadblocks as others—lack of clarity on processes, long waits and bureaucracy, and traditional feedback methods that seemingly went into a black...
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How do you cross the digital divide and blend online and offline (traditional) community engagement? What about during a pandemic? The City of Lancaster used online, offline, and blended approaches to ensure their diverse population was well represented in the City’s new engagement initiatives, which ranged from policing to mobility...
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In March 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), committing to distribute $350 billion to state and local governments. Compared to prior packages, ARPA provides cities and counties with more flexibility in how they allocate these funds, igniting debates across the country as to how to best...
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