Calimera Guidelines

Citizenship of the European Union, enshrined in the Treaty of Rome and further established by the Maastricht Treaty [1], is characterised by rights and duties and involvement in political life. A website has been set up to give people information about their rights and duties [2]. The reality however is that many citizens regard the EU, and their own governments, as merely remote political and economic entities. One way to encourage active citizenship is to improve access to information and services, and this is one of the aims of eGovernment.

The European Union defines eGovernment as “the use of information and communication technologies in public administrations, combined with organisational change and new skills, in order to improve public services and strengthen support to public policies” [3], and has declared it a priority in the eEurope 2005 Action Plan [4]. In September 2003, the Commission adopted a communication on eGovernment [5] calling on all administrations to ensure access to public services for all citizens, through investment in multi-platform approaches (PC, digital TV, mobile terminals, public access points etc). The recent expansion of the EU is an opportunity to boost eGovernment across the continent. Erkki Liikanen, former European Commissioner for Enterprise and the Information Society, has highlighted the skills and commitment to change of the new entrants [6], although the turnout at the 2004 European Parliament elections was unexpectedly low especially in these countries.

GOOD PRACTICE GUIDELINES Back to Scope

By their championship of intellectual freedom and the right to access information, cultural heritage institutions have a proven role to play in building active citizenship. They can do this on two levels:

· as public services they need to offer their own services electronically. (In fact public libraries are among the 20 basic services surveyed in the Top of the Web survey [7] and are the public e-service with the highest level of online usage.);

· as information services they can offer information about and access to other eGovernment services, local, national and European. Information is a powerful democratic tool, but it needs to be organised and managed so that it does not overwhelm, and this is the business of libraries and archives in particular.

Introducing eGovernment involves process integration, (changes in the “back office”), improvements in service delivery (changes in the “front office”), and interoperability. For museums, libraries and archives this means:

· for process integration - looking at which of their procedures can be changed from offline to online to achieve faster working, less duplication, easier performance measurement, financial savings, etc. For example it might be found that the same data is being collected and stored in more than one place and data sharing could enable the same data to be used for more than one purpose; Back to Scope

· for improvements in service delivery – introducing new ways to access the service e.g. Internet, digital TV, mobile terminals, public access points, telephone call centres, etc., to complement the more traditional face-to-face interactions at enquiry desks, etc. The benefits to be aimed for are those which customers want – time saving, no queuing, services available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, and services which are easy to use and easy to find without having to know specifically which institution or department to contact; Back to Scope

· for interoperability – enabling systems and institutions to work together for the benefit of users:

° interoperability could lead to making it easier for users interested in a subject to find useful information in a variety of museums, libraries and archives without needing to know exactly where to look in advance;

° interoperability can contribute to joined-up government. With interoperability between different departments and levels of government, data and systems can be shared and one-stop services provided. As Arvo Ott, the Head of the Informatics Department at the Estonian Ministry of Economics, has said “this will make government more efficient. There will be no need to run around town to different public offices. You can do your running around on the Web”;

° on a Europe-wide level, the European Commission has recently announced the final version of the European Interoperability Framework [8], which “provides recommendations and defines generic standards with regard to organizational, semantic and technical aspects of interoperability, offering a comprehensive set of principles for European cooperation in eGovernment." Back to Scope

eGovernment is made up of three elements: information, consultation and active participation.

Information can be defined as a one-way relationship in which government delivers information to citizens. Current trends show that the scope of information has increased greatly and that its provision now forms a shared objective for all EU countries. The EU provides a great deal of information online, including via portals such as the European Youth Portal [9]. All individual member countries also provide government information online, but the quantity, quality and range of information provided varies [7] and [10].

Community information Back to Scope

The public needs up to date community information in order to be effective and responsible citizens. Community information should be relevant to the whole community (see the guideline on Social inclusion). This type of information is clearly suitable for digitisation, which makes it more easily and widely accessible.

· Museums build a picture of their local community through artefacts and exhibitions.

· Archives contain official and unofficial records and documents of all kinds, as well as photographs and sound and video archives, both historical and contemporary, which illustrate and explain the development of the community they serve.

· Public libraries provide information about the range of organisations which make up civil society.

Digitisation makes it possible for museums, libraries and archives, and also users such as community groups etc., to create content which is useful as community information (see also the guideline on Cultural identity and cohesion).

· Museums can create virtual exhibitions and events organised around themes of importance and relevance to local communities.

· Archives can organise access by subject or theme regardless of format.

· Libraries can build seamless databases of local information searchable by subject, place and by organisation name. The type of information could include:

° local events;

° local voluntary groups including organisations for various social minorities such as older people, children, people who have types of illnesses, charities, residents organisations, sports clubs, hobbyists, etc.;

° self help groups;

° sexual minorities;

° political organisations and pressure groups;

° administrative bodies;

° political representatives;

° schools and colleges, private tutors;

° tourist information;

° local newspapers;

° local government information e.g. who does what and at which office;

° transport information e.g. times of buses and trains;

° lists of businesses though there is no point in duplicating the yellow pages;

° links to other community information pages in the same region.

Access to community information can be presented via a local portal ensuring wider and more seamlessly accessible coverage of all aspects of the life of a local community. Building and sustaining partnerships with public, voluntary and private organisations (such as social services departments, health services, colleges and universities, citizen’s advisory bodies, ethnic minority organisations, private sector organisations such as IT and local media companies, grant-making organizations) is a key part of creating and maintaining such a portal (see the guideline on Co-operation and partnership). Local libraries are well placed to create local community information portals and to act as mediators and co-ordinators, ensuring standards are maintained.

Consultation Back to Scope

Consultation is a two-way relationship in which citizens provide feedback on issues defined by government. This is on the rise but at a slower rate and large differences remain between European countries. The International Teledemocracy Centre (ITC) [11] based at Napier University in Scotland is however researching ways of using technology for consultation. It has worked on a number of, mainly Scottish, projects, including one for the Scottish Executive on “What sort of Scotland do we want to live in?” [12]

Active participation Back to Scope

Active participation can be defined as a partnership in which citizens actively shape policy options, but where government retains the responsibility for final decisions. Efforts to engage citizens in policy-making are rare and examples are confined to a few countries such as Estonia (see Links). The International Teledemocracy Centre is also researching ways of using technology for enabling participation. It has worked on a number of projects including the EC funded project, AVANTI (Added Value Access to New Technologies and services on the Internet) (see Links), which used prototype digital avatars (see also the guideline on Personalisation) to enhance the acceptability of eGovernment services to citizens. The Scottish Executive also used an animated human character, SEONAID, to engage young people in current affairs (see Links).

Another aspect of participation which governments are encouraging is e-transaction. This is where people fill in forms, make payments etc. electronically. The type of transactions people may be able to do online include:

· applying for a passport;

· registering to vote;

· licensing a vehicle;

· booking a driving test;

· buying a TV licence;

· completing a tax return;

· applying for benefits;

· paying taxes.

Museums, libraries and archives can help people to familiarise themselves with online transactions and build up trust in the process by introducing their own e-transactions. Many archives for example already enable citizens to order copies of genealogical records online, and many libraries make it possible for users to consult catalogues, request and renew books, etc. from home or work, and many users find this very convenient.

Personalisation can add value to eGovernment services (see the guideline on Personalisation). For example:

· information from various sources can be brought together and presented in a package to meet the user’s needs;

· government and local government departments could share data about people (subject to data protection legislation) so that they do not have to give the same information several times to different people, and to enable them to be addressed by name;

· form filling could be simplified if certain standard sections such as name and address could be filled in automatically using stored data.;

· people could collect in one place links to the services they use regularly, together with the personal information relevant to those services such as reference numbers etc. (a sort of “MyGovernment” or “MyLocalGovernment” similar to “MyMuseum” or “MyLearning”);

· they could register for alerts or reminders to be sent to them about transactions or updated information.

Community building Back to Scope

Community building plays an important part in encouraging active citizenship (see also the guideline on Cultural identity and cohesion). When people join together with others with shared interests, identities or histories it can make them feel included and can give them the confidence to participate in society and become active citizens.

Promoting access to public services Back to Scope

Local museums, archives and libraries can assist in promoting access to public services by:

· emphasising the positive role they can play in delivering eGovernment services. By aligning with eGovernment agendas they may attract new sources of funding;

· drawing on their experience of closeness to their users to help to ensure that eGovernment projects take into account what people want;

· demonstrating that new ways of interacting with government are effective and lead to change, so that people do not lose interest.

Museums, libraries and archives each have unique ways in which they can contribute to increasing participation in eGovernment, for example:

· Museums have moved a long way from being places with static exhibitions. When they programme displays in thought-provoking ways they can stimulate discussion both within the museum and outside via the media. Thus they can involve the community, including those sections not traditionally drawn to museums. The Animating Democracy Initiative [13] website contains numerous examples of innovative ways in which museums have contributed to community building and democracy, from linking exhibitions to film shows and lectures to organising informal discussion groups in coffee bars.

· Archives have an important and unique role to play in providing people with access to decisions made on their behalf. Archival records are essential to understanding the processes of decision-making and governance. This role has become increasingly important to public life as new responsibilities for the care of archives and current records have emerged. Freedom of information and data protection legislation, the demands of electronic records management and increasing media scrutiny of government have brought fresh challenges. The increasing interest in family and local history has in turn increased interest in archives by some previously socially excluded groups.

· Public libraries have historically been a key institution in civic participation for a variety of reasons, but chiefly because they can represent the public face of local government. They are sometimes the only civic buildings in local communities, especially in rural areas, and they often have opening hours that are more user-friendly than government offices, so making services available outside normal office hours. They can provide space for people to meet local councillors and members of parliament, and provide meeting places for organisations to organise their own events, together with support such as access to PCs, photocopiers, catering facilities. In addition they have been identified in a recent European Commission survey as the most frequently accessed local eGovernment service [8]. They can build on this by, for example:

° being strategically placed in local communities (in libraries, mobile libraries, kiosks etc.) to act as access points for eGovernment through Internet provision and guidance, ensuring everyone is within easy reach, especially those in rural areas or deprived neighbourhoods;

° providing training and support, face-to-face or on-line, for the public, for organisations, and also for public sector staff in the use of technology and the Internet etc.;

° providing communication channels (e.g. e-mail, video-conferencing, chat lines) for people to contact government officials etc.;

° providing e-mail addresses for local government staff;

° providing a platform for other local government departments to put information on the web;

° being the access points for national government ICT initiatives;

° providing an online platform for discussion groups and newsgroups;

° providing facilities for e-transactions – e.g. to pay bills, make appointments, fill in forms, make bookings for events, rooms, transport etc.;

° providing virtual access so that people can access information and services from their own homes and places of work etc.

° providing, or being active in ensuring provision of good delivery channels e.g. broadband and wireless networks;

° being represented on local decision-making bodies dealing with this subject;

° being knowledgeable about legal aspects such as data protection, privacy, and freedom of information.

° taking a lead in helping local government to set up interactive and interoperable eGovernment systems.

FUTURE AGENDA Back to Scope

In March 2004 the Commission adopted a Communication entitled Making citizenship Work: fostering European culture and diversity through programmes for Youth, Culture, Audiovisual and Civic Participation [14], in which it is recognised that the recent and future enlargements of the Union, together with demographic changes and immigration flows, make it more necessary than ever that Europe’s citizens have an opportunity to experience a feeling of belonging to the Union and are able to identify with it. Museums, libraries and archives will need to contribute towards making this happen.

People already take part in discussions on the websites of television and radio programmes, vote for their favourite contestant in TV reality shows, answer quiz questions online, use technology to do hazard perception and theory tests as part of their driving tests, etc. They also engage electronically with museums, libraries and archives (consulting online library catalogues, reserving and renewing books from home, booking tickets for exhibitions, buying goods from museum gift shops, ordering photographs from archives, etc). Familiarity with these sorts of activities should help to increase participation in eGovernment. The convenience, informality, anonymity (where appropriate), speed, and adaptability for people with disabilities, should draw in people who have never engaged in a debate about local or national issues before.

Postal voting generally produces a higher turnout, so e-voting might encourage even more people to vote. It offers a greater choice of when and where to vote, and should make counting faster and more accurate.

eGovernment should make it easy for people not only to find out about local issues (through access to the minutes of council meetings for example), but also to take part in decision making through consultation and polling, discussion forums, citizens’ panels etc., and to carry out certain transactions with government electronically.

The EU has set targets for all public services to have broadband connections and this will enable all museums, libraries and archives to deliver their own services electronically and, as broadband is rolled out to more citizens, to reach larger audiences.

As eGovernment becomes more widespread, people without personal access to the Internet will need to be within easy reach of public Internet access points with broadband or wireless connections. These could well be in museums, libraries or archives, which in most countries have a large number of buildings and mobile services.

For many people access via the Internet might not be possible, for a variety of reasons including personal preference. Other delivery channels will therefore be needed such as interactive TV. Very few people do not have access to a TV, and digital TV is gradually replacing analogue TV. Museums, libraries and archives will need to explore using a variety of delivery platforms.

New technology can be used to add value to traditional services, and allow the delivery of entirely new services. Museums, libraries and archives should seize opportunities to experiment and take part in research projects.

To be used, services need to be secure and trusted by the public. Museums, libraries and archives are used by a large proportion of the population of most countries and are generally seen as trustworthy. By conducting their own transactions electronically they can familiarise large numbers of people with e-services, demonstrate the benefits, and help to build up trust.

In future people will expect online access to be personalised and organised according to demand profiles, rather than according to service supply structures. Local authority run museums, libraries and archives can respond to this agenda by assisting in the development of systems for personalised access, and to deliver local eGovernment.

REFERENCES Back to Scope

[1] Maastricht Treaty http://www.eurotreaties.com/maastrichtext.html

[2] Dialogue with Citizens http://europa.eu.int/citizensrights/index_en.cfm

[3] About eGovernment

http://europa.eu.int/information_society/programmes/egov_rd/about_us/index_en.htm

[4] eEurope 2005 Action Plan

http://europe.eu.int/information_society/eeurope/2005/all_about/action_plan/index_en.htm

[5] The Role of eGovernment for Europe's Future

http://europa.eu.int/information_society/eeurope/2005/all_about/egovernment/communication/index_en.htm

[6] New Member States, future e-government champions?

http://europa.eu.int/ida/jsps/documents/dsp_showPrinterDocument.jsp?docID=3193&lg=en

[7] Report on quality and usage of public e-services in Europe. Top of The Web, November 2003. http://www.topoftheweb.net/en/

[8] European Interoperability Framework for Pan-European eGovernment services. Version 1.0. November 2004.

http://europa.eu.int/ida/servlets/Doc?id=18101

[9] The European Youth Portal http://www.europa.eu.int/youth/index_en.html

[10] eGovernment Factsheets - eServices for citizens [by country].

http://europa.eu.int/ida/en/chapter/422

[11] The International Teledemocracy Centre http://www.e-consultant.org.uk/

[12] What sort of Scotland do we want to live in?

http://e-consultant.org.uk/sustainability/

[13] The Animating Democracy Initiative

http://www.americansforthearts.org/AnimatingDemocracy/

[14] Making citizenship Work: fostering European culture and diversity through programmes for Youth, Culture, Audiovisual and Civic Participation http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/comcitizen_en.pdf

LINKS Back to Scope

Europe

AVANTI (Added Value Access to New Technologies and services on the Internet)

This project used prototype digital avatars to promote eGovernment services to citizens, targeting the “digitally excluded” in particular. The avatars were animated characters designed to guide a person through online transactions and services. Four public authorities across Europe were involved; the London Borough of Lewisham (England), Kista Borough/City of Stockholm (Sweden), the City of Edinburgh Council (Scotland) and Ventspils City Council (Latvia). The Edinburgh project dealt with library services. http://www.avantiproject.org/

European Interoperability Framework for Pan-European eGovernment Services. European Communities, 2004.

Very important and relevant document. Final European Interoperability Framework - November 2004. Provides recommendations and defines generic standards regarding organisational, semantic and technical aspects of interoperability, and offers a comprehensive set of principles for European co-operation in eGovernment.

http://europa.eu.int/ida/servlets/Doc?id=18101

Czech Republic

Portál Veřejné Správy České Republiky

Portal of the Czech government. http://portal.gov.cz/wps/portal

Společná česko-slovenská digitální parlamentní knihovna

The Parliamentary Library – project of the Common Czech and Slovak Digital Parliamentary Library http://www.psp.cz/eknih

Usti nad Orlici city library

Website with information for local goverment.

http://www.knihovna-uo.cz/knihovna/obce.html

Estonia

Esileht

An eGovernment portal providing a single, one-stop umbrella for the many government services already online, and for all new services being developed. Its features are being extended to provide access to hundreds of national and municipal websites and services. http://www.eesti.ee/est

Täna Otsustan Mina

An e-democracy website called TOM (Tana Otsustan Mina, or “Today, I'm Deciding”) has been running for several years, enabling citizens to comment on draft bills and submit their own ideas for legislation. http://tom.riik.ee/

Greece

Ministry of Economy and Finance

Official site of the General Secretariat for Information Systems of the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Gives useful information on the electronic services offered to the citizen and corporate entities, and enables online communications on tax, vehicle registration, etc. http://www.e-oikonomia.gr/

Ireland

Public Libraries to assist in the delivery of e-Government Services

Dublin City Public Libraries are carrying out a Research and development project (November 2004 - October 2005) aimed at developing a blueprint for assisting the delivery of eGovernment Services via Irish public libraries.

http://www.iol.ie/dublincitylibrary/projects_egovernment.htm

Italy

Iperbole, Bologna

Iperbole, Bologna Civic Network uses the Internet to develop teledemocracy, transparency in administration, the right to information, interaction with citizens and participation in decision-making. Libraries act as access points to Iberpole. http://www.comune.bologna.it/

Racine Rete civica dei Comuni e della provincia di Ravenna (Local network of Ravenna comuni and Provincia)

The network , created in 1995, has developed a complete integration of all the public information services in the area, and it offers its services to SME. The network has integrated both the Libraries and Museum networks

http://www.racine.ra.it/

http://opac.provincia.ra.it/h3/h3/ase

http://dev.racine.ra.it/sistemamusei/chisiam.htm

Luxembourg

eLuxembourg

Launched by the national library in 2001.

http://www.eluxembourg.lu/

Poland

“Cities on Internet” Association, Tarnów, Poland

The core mission of this organisation is to support public administration, both central and local, in the process of transformation toward modern eGovernment solutions. The “Cities on Internet” Association is co-operating with ELANET, ERIS@ and Telecities. http://www.smwi.pl/Ang/index.php

Poland’s Gate

This project is a part of the Ministry of Science and Information’s strategy for a platform for government services. http://www.informatyzacja.gov.pl

Slovenia

Državni portal Republike Slovenije (State Portal of the Republic of Slovenia)

This portal provides a single access point to many government services online. It enables citizens to fill in various forms and make transactions such as licensing a vehicle, booking a driving test, completing a tax return, applying for a passport, etc. It also provides user-friendly access to visually impaired people, and special access for WAP-enabled mobile phones. http://euprava.gov.si/e-uprava/euprava.euprava

Spain

TeleCities : Local Citizen Network of Gijón

Included in an organization of more than 120 European cities promoting the NTIC (Technologies de l’information et de la Communication). Its major aim is to foster “e-Citizenship for all” at a local level. A large number of Gijón citizens have citizen smart-cards which allow them to use many municipal services, including the local library network. The whole of the city is cabled with optical fibres.

http://www.bcn.es/telecities; http://www.ayto-gijon.es

Turkey

e-Türkiye (e-Turkey)

Portal including links to the Turkish legislation web site, government departments’ database, news on e-Turkey projects etc. http://www.turkiye.gov.tr/

United Kingdom

Active Citizenship Centre

Created by the UK Home Office to promote research that demonstrates the value of civil renewal and to inform policymaking in this area. The website contains much useful information about the benefits of active citizenship to communities, and aims to showcase best practice in this area. http://www.active-citizen.org.uk/

SEONAID (Scottish Executive Online News and Information Distributor)

Avatar used by the Scottish Executive in an experiment (now finished) to help motivate a younger, but very e-sophisticated, audience to learn more about the business of Government. Created in partnership with Digital Animations Group (DAG) (http://www.digital-animations.com/).

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/News-Extras/44

(For an account of this experiment see also Emerging technologies for the cultural and scientific heritage sector. Digicult Technology Watch Report 2. European Commission, 2004. ISBN 92-894-5276-5. pp.75-78.

http://www.digicult.info/pages/techwatch.php).

USA

Government Information Locator Service (GILS)

Several state libraries, including Washington State Library, have set up a GILS service to provide easy and useful access to government information in their states. The project has developed standards for interoperability, ease of language and innovative use of technology. http://find-it.wa.gov/