By GovFresh · June 29, 2016
icitizen re-launched in January 2016 with a broader goal, to change how we communicate on civic issues, connect with our communities and “promote meaningful change.” icitizen’s Jacel Egan shares the vision for its future.
Give us the 140-character elevator pitch.
icitizen is a nonpartisan app where citizens promote/stay informed on issues and vote in polls sent to policymakers to create change in their communities.
What problem does icitizen solve?
We connect citizens to the information, organizations and elected representatives most relevant to them. Through icitizen, citizens easily promote and stay informed on important issues and vote in polls to create meaningful change.
Anonymous poll results and public opinion data are shared with representatives, organizations, companies and other stakeholders to inform policy. Using representative sampling based on U.S. Census targets, our polling services help policymakers drive sound, data-driven decisions.
We help strengthen community relationships, facilitate open government and support partnerships between policymakers and the people they represent.
What’s the story behind starting icitizen?
icitizen was originally founded in 2012 by Duncan Dashiff out of frustration with our current political process and the disconnect in communication between citizens and elected representatives. We envisioned a nonpartisan civic engagement app where people could find information, be heard and work together with their representatives to create an impact in their communities.
In January 2016, icitizen was relaunched with a broader vision to help citizens, representatives, candidates, organizations, schools and companies strengthen their relationships with their communities and one another.
Our mission is to transform the way people communicate on civic issues, connect with their communities and promote meaningful change.
What are its key features?
Issue Cards are created by citizens, elected representatives, organizations and icitizen. They’re posed in the form of statements and users can cast their support or opposition.
Issue Cards serve two purposes:
1) For citizens to gain support for issues they would like addressed in their community 2) For representatives and organizations to gather sentiment on a specific issue or policy
Straw Polls are created by elected representatives, organizations and icitizen to gain insight into public opinion. They’re posed in the form of questions and intended to gather sentiment from citizens on trending issues or legislative policies.
Rep/Organization Cards are profiles for elected officials, organizations, schools and companies to help them better connect with their communities. On their profiles, they have district rankings, priorities, contact information and more. In future iterations, they’ll also be home to voting records, sponsored bills, committee assignments, etc.
What are the costs, pricing plans?
icitizen will always be free for citizens. We also work with organizations, schools, elected representatives, candidates and companies to help them better connect with their communities. Through our polling services and analytics, they can receive aggregated, anonymized data and demographics on public opinion. We charge based on how detailed or targeted the data request is.
How can those interested connect with you?
- icitizen.com
- Facebook.com/YouCount
- Twitter: @icitizen
- Instagram: @icitizen
- social@icitizen.com