Civic Hacking @ LA RubyConf 2010

Civic HackingLuigi Montanez

[email protected] RubyConf 2010

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

Question? @LuigiMontanez

I am here to recruit you.


“D.C. is Hollywood for ugly people.”


“Transparency”


Questions for me? @LuigiMontanez


“Civic Hacking”


Participatory Democracy


Umm, we’re software

developers...

Text

Civic Hacking


Some Guiding Principles...


Electoral Politics


Electoral Politics

Governance


Closed Source


Closed Source

Open Source


Civic Side Projects


Open Source + Open Data =

Better Government


Government as a wholesaler, not retailer


.fec? .wtf?


High Quality Raw Data

✴ First: Raw data in XML, JSON, or CSV✴ Second: RESTful APIs in JSON/XML✴ Third: Nothing really...


Civic Hacking Defined


Federal Government

Credit: vgm8383 on Flickr


APIs about Congress

✴ Sunlight Labs API - Bio and contact info✴ OpenSecrets.org - Contributions✴ GovTrack.us - Bills and Vote Records✴ MAPLight.org - Vote Influence


U.S. Courts System✴ 1 Supreme Court✴ 12 Courts of Appeals✴ 94 District Courts✴ Courts for Patents, International Trade,

Bankruptcy


StateGovernments


Other State Efforts✴ FollowTheMoney.org✴ 50 State Project - transform legislative data

for all 50 states into a common format


Cities✴ Washington, D.C.✴ New York City✴ San Francisco


311 API


What about my city?


Getting Involved✴ groups.google.com/group/sunlightlabs✴ #transparency on Freenode✴ github.com/sunlightlabs✴ @sunlightlabs on Twitter✴ SunlightLabs.com


Consider Civic Hacking✴ Enhance your skillset✴ Low risk, high reward✴ Another testing framework? Really?✴ Local/state govts. an untapped market✴ Solve a hard problem


Ask not what your country can do for you.Ask what you can do for

your country.


Thanks!


Questions?

Civic Hacking @ LA RubyConf 2010

Technology

Transcript of Civic Hacking @ LA RubyConf 2010