Web Technologies Supporting Direct Participation in Democratic Processes

introduction

Project Partners - The Consortium

The consortium consists of eight partners from four different countries:

Project co-ordinator:

Partners:

  • University of Wolverhampton (UW), The School of Computing & Information Technology, United Kingdom
  • University of Regensburg (UR), The Department of Information Systems, Germany / University of Essen (UE), The Department of Information Systems, Germany
  • JUVIER s.r.o. (JUV), Slovak Republic
  • Citec Information Oy Ab (CIT), Vaasa, Finland
  • The Local Authority Kosice - City ward Tahanovce (LATA), Slovak Republic
  • The Local Authority Kosice - City ward Dargovskych hrdinov (LAFU), Slovak Republic
  • Wolverhampton City Council (WCC), United Kingdom
  • _______________________

    Project Partners - more details

    Technical University of Kosice, Slovakia
    The Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Informatics, Department of Cybernetics and Artificial Intelligence
    www.tuke.sk
    Technical University of Kosice provides education and research activities in the whole range of engineering disciplines, economy, and arts. It has more than 12,000 master and bachelor students and about 650 PhD students. The Department of Cybernetics and Artificial Intelligence has a strong record in applied research on knowledge- based systems, Web technologies, knowledge management, and knowledge modelling. Members of the group involved in the project have extensive experiences in international educational and research projects. Within the project they are responsible for development of SW modules. The Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Informatics is the coordinator of the Webocracy project.
    Citec Information Oy, Finland
    www.citec.fi. www.doczilla.com
    Citec Information Oy Ab is one of the leading providers of technical information design, management, solutions and processes in the Nordic Countries. Citec has a broad experience in designing and implementing technical information related projects based on international standards and recommendations. We offer technical information services from business communication to software development. As a member of the World Wide Web Consortium we have a "State of the Art" view of Web technology development and the opportunity to influence the direction of the web development. In Webocracy project our role is to provide the latest web technology market information, develop the Webocracy project related methodologies and support our technology partners in Webocrat system development.
    Juvier s.r.o., Slovakia
    www.juvier.sk
    The company was established in the year 1995. At the time of its establishment it was a trading company in various products. Later this activity was amended by providing services, consultations and training courses in the field of information technologies. In the year 1998 the focus was shifted to specialised services in the field of Intranet and Internet applications. Since 2000 it is also involved in the research and development works for robots used in nuclear plants and research institutes (CERN). An integral part of the company's activities is a close relationship and co-operation with local representatives and governments, especially with relation to providing services to the suburbs of the city of Kosice. Within the Webocracy project the company is responsible for the design of the communication infrastructure and analysis of users' needs.
    The University of Regensburg, Germany
    www.uni-regensburg.de
    The university of Regensburg is a state owned university with approximately 15,000 students and 4000 employees. Today the university comprises twelve faculties, providing a wide range of academic subjects. The Department of Information Systems is part of the Faculty of Business Administration and Economics which is in terms of student population the strongest faculty of the whole University. The research group involved in Webocracy has its main research areas in information systems analysis and design, Web-based information systems, and in computer security in general. In these areas the group is investigating the impacts of new technology on common business practice, the use of advanced information systems concepts, and the development of a global framework for establishing digital trade by the new means of digital media.
    Wolverhampton City Council, UK
    www.wolverhampton.gov.uk
    The Council is an all-purpose local authority serving a population of about 240,000 in the northwest area of the UK West Midlands conurbation. It has about 12,000 employees providing services including housing, education, town planning, leisure facilities, highways, social services and environmental health. The Council has 60 elected members, and in line with national proposals for renewing local democracy it has adopted a cabinet system from May 2000. The Leader of the Council chairs the Cabinet. Nine Councillors from the Cabinet are responsible for major areas of service, and they work together in teams and as a whole to deal with cross-cutting issues. The Webocracy Project is designed to be user-led. Wolverhampton City Council's role in the project is to specify user requirements and to carry out trials of the system. In this way the project gains from direct experience and usage in order to support local democratic processes.
    The University of Wolverhampton, UK
    www.scit.wlv.ac.uk
    School of Computing and Information Technology, Wolverhampton, West Midlands UK, The University of Wolverhampton is a growing, innovative and friendly University with five campuses located throughout the West Midlands and Shropshire. Wolverhampton University is one of the largest in the UK with over 23,000 students on five campuses. The University offers a huge range of specialist degrees and diplomas - over 100 first degrees, 40 taught Masters and numerous professional qualifications in traditional subjects and more modern areas such as Complementary Therapy, Virtual Reality, Automotive Design and Multimedia. Wolverhampton University is playing a major role in the development of the Webocracy system. It is responsible for the design and development of the Discussion Forum, the Tender Publishing Component, Project Evaluation and Smart Addressing.
    The City ward Kosice - Dargovskych hrdinov (LAFU), Slovakia
    www.kosice-dh.sk
    The City ward Kosice - Dargovskych hrdinov's population of about 30,000 is predominantly young with an average age 37 years. The Local parliament has 45 local MPs. The Local Authority prepares long-term investment projects facilitates entrepreneurial activities, and takes care of the environment. It also provides social services and supports cultural activities by means of a local cultural centre. The organizational chart of the Local Authority is structured by tasks and activities executed by the Local Authority. The Local Authority strives to incorporate information and communication technology into everyday life in order to provide efficient and better-quality services. The main aim is to improve access of citizens to the information and services provided by the Local Authority. Within the Webocracy Project LAFU has a status of a user partner and is responsible for design, testing and evaluation of the pilot application.
    The City ward Kosice - Sidlisko Tahanovce (LATA), Slovakia
    www.tahanovce.sk/mutah
    The City ward Kosice - Sidlisko Tahanovce was established in 1990 when the National Council of the Slovak Republic divided city Kosice into 22 areas - city wards. At present the City ward has about 22,000 inhabitants, majority of them belong to the younger generation (40% of the total population are children). The Local parliament has 31 elected representatives. The Local Authority has 21 employees, their most important duties are a preparation of long-term investment projects, support of cultural activities, social services and environmental health. The duties also include collecting local taxes and payments, statistics of population and migration of people, and other activities implied by the Law No. 369/1990 of National Council of Slovak Republic.