During the eParticipation Awards ceremony today, the 2009 winners were announced.
In the category Government the intiative De Amstel Verandert became first. One of the boroughs of the city of Amsterdam is developing a vision for its future, centred around the changing river Amstel. A platform has been created for inhabitants to be involved in this process. Many ideas were forwarded and taken into account.
The initiative Verbeter de Buurt won in the category Society. Improve Your Neighbourhood enables citizens to comment on the quality of their city in a transparent way. Problems and ideas can be posted on a Google map which also shows whether or not action has been taken. About half of the Dutch municipalities are committed to follow up on reportings from the public.
According to the jury eParticipation is gaining speed, since compared to last year there were many more projects to choose from. Both winning initiatives are examples for citizen involvement on the local level. Burgerlink which organises the annual Awards hopes that the municipal elections will boost interest in and use eParticipation.
See all ten nominations announced by the jury on November 4th.