The National League of Cities, as part of its work with Knight Foundation, is hosting a free webinar highlighting civic engagement in Philadelphia this Wednesday (April 24) at 2pm Eastern.
While many tech entrepreneurs are passionate advocates for their communities, most are ambivalent about city hall: neither expecting nor offering assistance, and often working around rather than with local elected leaders. This is not the case in Philadelphia, where a dynamic partnership has developed among city government, civic leaders and entrepreneurs from the technology community.
The city has launched one of the country’s leading open data portals, attracted millions of dollars in broadband stimulus, and is thinking differently about the way local government delivers services. This “civic fusion” is the result of a new kind of engagement between city leaders and some of its most active, entrepreneurial residents, and a new philosophy about the role of each in supporting strong local economies.
Join NLC for what is sure to be a lively discussion on how technology can connect public officials with private and non-profit civic leaders for meaningful community engagement. This webinar is being done in conjunction with the soon-to-be released report from NLC and Knight Foundation, “Bright Spots in Community Engagement: Case Studies of U.S. Communities Creating Greater Civic Participation from the Bottom Up.” It also coincides with Philly Tech Week.
Speakers will include:
- Chris Kingsley, Senior Associate for Data Initiatives, National League of Cities
- Mark Headd, Chief Data Officer, City of Philadelphia
- Jeff Friedman, Co-Director, Philadelphia Office of New Urban Mechanics
Panelists will include:
- Paul E. Wright, Director, Local Media Development, Comcast
- Alex Hillman, Co-Founder, Indy Hall
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