Introducing Community Explore
And why it’s of interest to you!
This October we’ve launched the Community Explore programme as part of the Power To Change’s Discovery Fund — a fund to develop new ideas and learn new skills.
We’re supporting community businesses to undertake user research and explore a challenge they have identified, and the opportunity community technology presents to tackle that challenge.
We’re working alongside brilliant partners Promising Trouble, and Third Sector Lab
Free resources and insights
Many of the resources we’re using on the Community Explore programme you can find for free in our Digital Toolkit — you can use these to support your own user-centred, test-driven digital design project. Or, if this feels a little overwhelming because you’re new to this way of working, sign up for one of our short demystifying ‘Design Hop’ introduction courses.
As part of the Discovery Fund, organisations are asked to work in the open and write weeknotes. They will be supported in this endeavour by Third Sector Lab.
Weeknotes are a great way to follow the journey through the eyes of the community businesses and learn from their insights.
Over the next six months we’ll be sharing links to selected weeknotes as well as assets grantees create that can help you in your work.
To get started, here are some great examples of what to expect from the weeknotes — Penelope from Women Rise Up CIC and Rachel Sutton from Future Wolverton Limited.
Follow this account to keep up to date on all things Community Explore!
Can I hear you say ‘but wait, what’s Community Technology?’
My brilliant colleague Ellen Smyth wrote this about community tech:
There is a great report from Power to Change and Promising Trouble on The Case for Community Tech. It defines community technology as:
The term “community tech” means any hardware or software that delivers benefit to a community group, and which that community group has the authority to influence or control. A community group may create a piece of technology for their own use or use by other groups, or to be governed or adapted by other groups
Community technology initiatives can encompass a wide range of areas, including:
- Digital Inclusion: Ensuring that all members of a community have access to digital resources, such as the internet, computers, and digital skills training.
- Community Development: Using technology to support economic development, job creation, and sustainable practices within a community.
- Civic Engagement: Utilising technology to enable citizens to participate in local governance, decision-making processes, and community-driven projects.
- Education: Implementing technology in educational programs to provide more accessible and effective learning opportunities for community members.
- Healthcare: Leveraging technology to improve healthcare access and or help communities engage with health information.
- Social Services: Using technology to streamline the delivery of social services, connect individuals with resources and support.
- Environmental Sustainability: Applying technology to monitor and manage environmental issues within a community, such as pollution, waste management, and sustainable energy solutions.
- Collaboration and Communication: Facilitating communication and collaboration among community members, organisations, and local businesses through technology platforms and tools.
Plus many more! Community technology initiatives can be driven by community businesses, individuals, governments, non-profit organisations, grassroots movements, or private sector entities. The goal is to harness the power of technology to create positive social impact, bridge digital divides, and promote community-driven development.
So when is it better to use existing digital solutions rather than develop community technology?
Deciding whether to use existing digital solutions or develop new community technology depends on various factors, including the specific needs of the community, available resources, the complexity of the problem, and the existing technological landscape. Here are some scenarios when it’s better to use existing solutions:
- Urgency: If the community’s needs are urgent, using existing technology can help you move at a quicker pace to provide urgently needed support.
- Well-Established Solutions: If there are proven and widely adopted digital solutions that directly address the needs of the community, it may be more efficient and cost-effective to use these existing tools. The behaviour change needed to support communities to change from something working “well enough” to something “a bit better” will come with pros and cons. Is there evidence that an existing solution has successfully addressed similar challenges in other communities? This is a strong indicator that it might work for your community as well.
- Limited Resources: Developing technology from scratch requires significant resources, including time, expertise, and funding. If your community has limited resources, it might be more practical to leverage existing solutions in some areas of your project.
- Compatibility and Integration: If the existing technology integrates well with other tools, platforms, or systems used by the community, it can be more beneficial to avoid the complexities of custom development. It is also worth considering if new technology will meet growing demands if the need for support, or size of your community grows. Is an existing solution going to help you deliver support more easily at scale? Is it sustainable?
