We’re are gathered the Code for America tribe in San Francisco. Our city partners in the fellowship, the leaders of the Brigades in 16 cities, fellows past, present, and future, the companies in our civic accelerator, our funders and supporters, and others who care about reinventing the citizen-government relationship for the 21st century. Two hundred and seventy-five of us, together two and half days.
We’re together for a whole host of very practical reasons. There are applications to be redeployed, initiatives to be shared, approaches to be discussed, and common vocabulary to find. There are connections to be made: alliances, meeting of the minds, and friendships that will sustain this community as it evolves over the years. But the real reason we gather is that networks can do what individuals can’t, and our ambitious vision will only be realized by a strong, diverse, vibrant network. We get together to build that network. Or what Clay Johnson calls our “vast rational conspiracy.”
A physical event holds only so many people, and we know there are those of you who are critical players in the “conspiracy” who aren’t here with us. We need mechanisms for building and supporting the network that scale. That’s why we’ve decided to start a new initiative we’re calling the Peer Network, a year-round community for change agents in local government. It’s a way to come together in convenient, but deeply engaging ways throughout the year around the big ideas that inspire us and the practical approaches that work.
If you’re a change agent in local government, take a look at our starting place, and let us know if you’d like to join. And for everyone who’s working towards this ambitious agenda, inside or outside government, follow along on the blog and our twitter stream for updates from the front lines of civic innovation.
Questions? Comments? Hit us up @codeforamerica.
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