Time to look forward... and back

A significant milestone

This is a big year - our 20th!

Anniversaries are a time to look back on everything you've achieved, of course. We'll also be using this opportunity to set a course for where we can have most impact over the next couple of decades.

If you've been part of mySociety, be it as a user of our services, a developer of our sites, a volunteer, staff member, trustee or enthusiastic advocate — watch this space, as we'll be asking for both your memories and ideas over the coming months.

But to start with, do have a read of our Chief Exec Louise's kick-off anniversary post for more detail on what we'll be thinking and talking about this year.

TICTeC Labs: what's been achieved?

TICTeC Labs has been an ambitious programme, and quite unlike anything we've run before.

This open programme of discussions, working groups and commissions has resulted in six concrete outputs that will benefit the global civic tech community as a whole.

From accessibility guides to data training, these outputs will be presented at our final event, where we'll also be discussing where the programme worked well, and what we'd do differently in the future.

All are welcome to join us at the online event, Reflections on Civic Tech Labs. Book your place here.

Helping keep Scotland accountable

Impacts: they come from grassroots campaigns; they come from bigger organisations; and sometimes they come from the establishment itself. 

For an example of the latter, look no further than the Council Climate Plan Scorecards project being cited in oral evidence to the Scottish Parliament Committee by the Accounts Commission for Scotland.

That's a big deal! But we know that, for many people, these institutions won't be all that familiar, so we've broken it all down in this case study.

Using FOI for Scorecards

Last year they looked at Action Plans. This year our friends at Climate Emergency UK have started the huge task of surveying the actual action councils are taking towards their carbon-cutting targets. To help them out, they've recruited hundreds of volunteers.

One tool among the many that they'll be using is the FOI Act: and that's an area where we are, of course, happy to be able to help.

Somebody's watching you

When we found out about Big Brother Watch's amazing FOI-based investigation into Chinese surveillance cameras being used in the UK, we wanted to know more - especially as they'd used our WhatDoTheyKnow Pro service to manage the bulk requests to schools, NHS trusts and other institutions. 

If you think of a CCTV camera as a dumb recording device that just takes video... you're in for a surprise. We chatted with Big Brother Watch's Jake Hurfurt to learn more: see what we found out in our blog post.

All the fun of the FOIA

When a certain authority was added to the WhatDoTheyKnow database, the pun-loving team couldn't resist some verbal acrobatics.

Roll up, roll up and read the results for yourself.

New developments for Alaveteli

Improvements to the Alaveteli codebase — the software that underpins WhatDoTheyKnow and Freedom of Information sites around the world — continue apace.

mySociety's Transparency Programme Lead, Gareth, describes two big steps forward: one that you may have already noticed on the pages of WhatDoTheyKnow, and another that, behind the scenes, makes it much easier for us to keep publishing as much useful information as possible.

What we're reading

• Is it too late to detoxify online political discourse? Maybe not, with the development of the Dignity Index.
• Listen or read Cory Doctorow on (neologism alert) the en💩ification of TikTok - or how platforms die.
• A teddy bear grapples with a council budget? Yeah, we'd buy tickets for that.
• Pothole memes. We're up for it.
• Gutted! 

And finally…

• If you're a charity with an environmental or climate remit, we can wholeheartedly recommend the Weston Communicating Climate programme, which is now open for applications.

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