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- Study guide
- Module 1
- Topic 1: What is Student Digital Civic Engagement?
- Topic 2: How is Digital Civic Engagement Impacting Universities (and Beyond)?
- Topic 3: What Competences do Student Civic Engagers Develop?
- Topic 4: What does Student Digital Civic Engagement Look Like in Practice?
- Evaluation test for module 1
- Resources and further studies (Module 1)
- Module 2
- Topic 1: Problems that need solving – spotlight on global issues
- Topic 2: Improving your community through civic engagement
- Topic 3: Taking a service-learning approach to an DCE project
- Topic 4: DCE is building your competency levels. Here are the opportunities
- Evaluation test for module 2
- Resources and further studies (Module 2)
- Module 3
- Topic 1: What Do Great Digital Civic Engagement Projects Include?
- Topic 2: Getting Involved In Your First Digital Civic Engagement Project/ Initiative
- Topic 3: Using Technology To Enhance Your Civic Engagement Work
- Topic 4: Designing/ Delivering Digital Civic Engagement Solutions
- Evaluation test for module 3
- Resources and further studies (Module 3)
- Module 4
- Module 5
- Topic 1: Estimating Project Costs And Financial Needs
- Topic 2: Spotlight On Lean Start Up and Sustainable Business Model Canvas
- Topic 3: Crowdfunding Your Civic Engagement Projects /Causes
- Topic 4: Leveraging the power of corporate social responsibility
- Evaluation test for module 5
- Resources and further studies (Module 5)
- Module 6
- Topic 1: Why Building Credibility, Trust and Relationships are Key
- Topic 2: Cultivating and Growing a Student Civic Engagement Community
- Topic 3: Spotlight on Mission Marketing
- Topic 4: Technology Tools to Help You Share and Spread Your Civic Engagement Work
- Evaluation test for module 6
- Resources and further studies (Module 6)
Topic 1: What Do Great Digital Civic Engagement Projects Include?
This topic gathers similarities between Digital Civic Engagement projects to help highlight what can ensure the success of a Digital Civic Engagement project. The learning outcome of this topic will include an understanding of what makes a good civic engagement project, as well as how to get started with creating and getting involved with their own digital civic engagement project.
There are several identifier/success factors which we can use to ensure our project will both be a success, but also give our communities the best chance of thriving.
The following are concepts that will help to ensure that your SDCE project will be the best it can be.
Direct Service and Community Research
Great SDCE projects will certainly include direct service and community research.
- Direct service is where personal time and dedication is given to the project to help address community needs.
- Community research entails exploring a community to learn about its assets and how it is affected by current social problems.
Using both of these concepts, you can ensure that what your project offers a ‘fix’ to a real civic issue, ensuring that people are backing your project.
Advocacy and Education & Capacity Building
Advocacy and education is where your team educates the community about issues it might be facing. This can result in advocacy, which is where your project uses various ways to enforce change such as petitions, protests or letter writing in order to convince corporations or governments to change.
Capacity building identifies the strengths of a community, and works on these in order to create a stronger problem-solving network to help community Issues.
Political Involvement and Social Responsibility
Political involvement is where you actively encourage others to participate in active citizenship, registering people to vote, or campaign for political causes.
Social responsibility ensures that all actions professionally and personally impact the project and community in a responsible and positive way.
Philanthropic Giving and Participation in Association
Philanthropic giving ensures that resources are given to those who need them. This can be funding for different projects, donating needed items or even participating in fund raising events.
Participation in association occurs when you involved with different community projects and businesses. This gives you the necessary networks to ensure that your own SDCE project will become a success .
Good Practice Example: Taking a Closer Look at the Starter Program
The Starter Program at the University of Tartu was an extracurricular activity for students which seeks to develop an entrepreneurial mind-set and spirit in students.
Financed by EU Social Fund, it was a three-month long idea-development program which involves a kick-off event, several training sessions and workshops, a networking event, mentoring sessions and a demo day.
The programme seek to attract students who want to experience the process of coming up with an idea to launch a product or service.
The programme sought to attract students who want to experience the process of coming up with an idea to launch a product or service. During this process the students explored the problems in community and tried to develop solutions.
In the Starter Program, the student teams worked independently on their ideas to solve or find a solution for certain problems using different digital communication channels.
Quite often they ended up with new digital tools or solution and took care of the implementation to a specific community need.
Link to the case study in the Guide to DCE
Quick Test
