Civic hacknight #253 VIRTUAL - Making Civic Spaces: Public Interest Tech in TO

• Topic:

This presentation is intended to update the CTTO community on Curtis McCord's dissertation research on CTTO, as it approaches its final phase. We'll recap some of the original research interests and the methodology, and explore preliminary findings that describe the social world of "public interest technology" in Toronto, and where CTTO finds its niche. From here, we can begin to explore some of the research themes that have emerged from interviews, fieldwork, and discussions, and how these can be valuable to the CTTO community, for example through documentation and workshops. The presentation will aim to be brief, with potential for more conversation afterwards!

• Bio

Curtis McCord is a PhD Candidate at the University of Toronto's Faculty of Information, where his research examines public engagement processes and technology development. To do this, Curtis takes an interdisciplinary approach that blends methods and frameworks from Systems Thinking, Science and Technology Studies, Political Communications, and Human-Computer Interaction. Past projects have included a deconstruction of Budget Talks, Ontario's digital pre-budgetary consultation, an examination of Sidewalk Toronto's engagement methods and project scope, as well as collaborations on critical approaches to requirements engineering. Curtis has been attending Civic Tech Toronto since 2015, and for the last year, has been volunteering at CTTO as part of his dissertation research.

Twitter cwm__

• Social Media Cheat Codes:

@CivicTechTO #civictech
https://link.civictech.ca/tweet

• Venue Sponsor:

Join us this week from the comfort of your own home, or wherever you are practicing social isolation, for a virtual civic tech hacknight!

• Check-in details:

Join us via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85847811289?pwd=THhwOEQvTlh5R3QvbWxha25xTWdGUT09
Webcams and mics optional, but encouraged!

Join via your browser: https://us02web.zoom.us/wc/join/85847811289?pwd=THhwOEQvTlh5R3QvbWxha25xTWdGUT09

Dial-in by phone in Canada:
+1 647 558 0588
Meeting ID: 858 4781 1289
Password: 008446

Check in with us on the Civic Tech Toronto Slack: https://link.civictech.ca/chat

• Accessibility:

We're exploring ways to make our online hacknights more accessible, but at the moment we only provide video of the presentation slides and audio.

• About Us:

Our weekly civic tech hacknights bring together designers, coders, urban planners, government staff, mappers, policy-makers, students, communications strategists, and all other Torontonians who share an interest in making Toronto more responsive, prosperous, sustainable and equitable, through design, tech, and data. (Coders are welcome, but you don’t have to be a coder to contribute!) Come and be part of it!

• Agenda:

7:00-7:10 = Welcome and Introductions
7:10-7:45 = Presentation and Q&A/discussion
7:45-9:00 = Breakout groups (go make something!)
> 9:00 = Civic Tech Toronto Virtual Hang Out

For more info, visit http://civictech.ca
Here's our Code of Conduct: http://civictech.ca/about-us

Hope to see you Tuesday!