Code for All Newsletter — July 2021

Our bi-monthly newsletter is one of the ways we share updates, resources, and opportunities from within the global civic tech community.

It’s been an active two months as we’ve brought a new team member onboard! Mar, our new Communication Assistant, joins us all the way from Mexico 🇲🇽 and so far, she’s rocking it! You can’t miss what we’re cooking up on social media, so be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram!

Ready for some civic tech updates? We’ve prepared this quick break-down of resources, opportunities, and updates from all around the civic tech world. Here we go!

• Our Call for Proposals for the Code for All Summit 2021 is now OPEN! 🎉This year’s Summit will focus on Open vs. Closed Tech in Government, Democracy & Elections, Disinformation & Fake News, and Power Dynamics in Tech. Sessions will include Panels, Lighting Talks and Workshops! The deadline to submit a speaking proposal is July 31st HERE.
• Upcoming news! With the help of consultant Anca Matioc, we’re designing a new workshop for Network and CoP members called “Exploring Financial Sustainability for Nonprofits”. We’ll be launching the open call for interested organizations to participate soon, so stay tuned!
• Drumroll, please. We’ll soon launch our new branding, logo and website designed by the amazing Lissett García Albornoz, and we can’t wait for you to see it!

Here find updates from a handful of our 30+ member organizations.

• Ciudadanía Inteligente 🌎 launched “The Constitution is Ours” for the Chilean civil society. This project will be carried out with CONSTITU + YO, the Global Initiative and Friedrich-Ebert Stiftung (FES) as an open and collaborative platform that seeks to claim citizen power. Its objective is to make visible and articulate citizens’ proposals for the new Constitution, connect with the work of the Constituent Constituents in Chile, and influence social rights and democratic strengthening together.
• Code for Africa 🌍 The Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2021 was released on 24 June, of which CfA wrote the Nigeria and South Africa research. Our Knowledge team walked away with a Sigma Award, the first one in Africa, for Mapping Makoko. The story was produced in partnership with the Guardian Nigeria, the Pulitzer Centre on Crisis Reporting, Humanitarian OpenStreetMap, MakokoDreams, AfricanDrone and UhuruLabs. It has been featured in a number of international media outlets, including CNN and the BBC. As part of our wider rollout of fact-checking desks in Africa, we have partnered with UNESCO, the EU and IFCN to launch an eight-country fact-checking network in West Africa, the African Anglophone Fact-Checking Alliance. Lastly, the Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP) will launch its report on 14 July, which is the largest study on the portrayal and representation of women in news and media. Alongside some of the research, enumerators used the GMMP App, which is developed and maintained by CfA to record the data.
• Code for America 🇺🇸 celebrated their 2021 Summit, where mainstage speakers and breakout sessions explored what designing an equitable government looks like. From data matching and policy design to equitable practices and digital transformation, you can rewatch the entire conference here.
• Code for Australia 🇦🇺 just launched a podcast! In ‘Talking About a More Digital Government’ we’ll hear from people involved in creating better digital outcomes within government and civic tech. If you are keen to be a guest, get in touch!
  They have several things cooking up! A new Fellowship with Revenue New South Wales to create an open data platform for the public to have a better view and understand information that affects them; their Rules as Code Fellows are wrapping up their project — check out more here; the launch of a new program which will see more senior, experienced digital government practitioners giving advice.
  Gender Equity has become a big focus in the coming months. CfAustralia has completed a Gender Audit and action plan, and also launched a Women’s Professional Development program. Want to know more? Check out this video.
• Code for Canada 🇨🇦 is thrilled to announce the appointment of our new Executive Director, Dorothy Eng!
  They will be spending the summer on a country-wide “listening tour” of local Canadian civic tech groups to learn more about their visions for their communities and how Code for Canada can support them.
  Its inclusive usability testing program, GRIT (Gathering Residents to Improve Technology,) is going national! They are looking to expand their participant pool outside of the Greater Toronto Area to involve voices from across the country in helping design products and services that work for everyone.
  Their fifth cohort of Fellows is wrapping up their 10-month long projects with their government partners in August 2021.
• Code for Germany 🇩🇪 As temperatures rise and Germany approaches the so-called ‘Sommerloch’ (summer slump), their team of tireless volunteers continues to publish a monthly overview of the latest developments in the Open Data and Civic Tech scene. The June edition of our blog series ‘Out in the Open’ reviews goings-on in Germany and beyond.
• Code for Japan 🇯🇵 has started to prepare the Code for Japan Summit 2021, for the memorable 10 years after the East Japan Earthquake, co-hosted by Brigade in Tohoku area.
  They are also running the CivicTech Challenge Cup U-22 (CCC U-22) and CivicTech Accelerator Program(CAP) for younger generation of civic hackers.
  And also, they are exhibiting works related to Civic Tech at the 2121 design exhibition, using desidim as a discussion platform and animations. Check them out HERE and HERE.
• Code for Pakistan 🇵🇰is launching a new Fellowship Program in partnership with the National Institute of Health (NIH)! Ten Fellows will work with the NIH over the course of three months to develop new solutions and services, as well as improve and maintain existing ones.
• Open Data Kosovo 🇽🇰 is dreaming big! During the past week, awesome youngsters have successfully finished the training sessions as part of the ‘Digital Development Program’. This program is part of the “Building Strong and Resilient Communities in Mitrovica” project, financed by the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund and implemented by Community Building Mitrovica, Mundësia, and Open Data Kosovo.
• OpenUp 🇿🇦 shared anti-corruption initiatives and tools in South Africa, such as Keep the Receipts, in the Open Government Week with Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) and a team of collaborators to discuss open procurement data and transparent governments.

This is where we share current job opportunities we’ve found within and around the network.

• Code for Pakistan 🇵🇰 Country Head
• Code for Africa 🌍 Health Editor | Senior Programme Manager
• Code for Canada 🇨🇦 Web Developer (Contract) | Data Engineer (Contract) *We are also looking for volunteers to help us assess our Data Engineer candidates.
• Open Up 🇿🇦 Product Owner | Senior full stack developer | Project Manager
• Code for Australia 🇦🇺 UX Designer | Full Stack Developers | Front End Developer | Developer Expression Of Interest

This is where we share upcoming events within the civic tech realm.

• [September 27–30] Code for All Summit. Save the date!
• [November 2–5] FWD50 *Code for Canada 🇨🇦 will be securing a limited number of complimentary tickets for Code for All representatives — stay tuned!

Here’s a list of some of our latest and most-read articles.

• Towards Open Government Kosovo.
• User-Centred Civic Technology with OpenUp.
• Design Principles that Put People at the Center.
• Neglected and Unmapped: Makoko struggles to survive.
• How to create a meaningful Professional Development program for your team.

To get in touch with Code for All, hit reply to this email or find us on Slack (Sofia, Lorin, Mar and Nonso).

Ready to share what you know and inspire your peers? If you know anyone else who wants to subscribe to our Community Newsletter, they can sign up to receive updates here.

Until next month — keep up the good work!

Team Code for All