The 2011 Community Matters Campaign

The 2011 Community Matters Campaign:

Reimagining Great Citizenship

CityClub's 2011 Community Matters Campaign focused on the ingredients of great citizenship and engaged over 21,000 participants.

CityClub convened participants both online and face to face to discuss what we can and need to do individually and communally to overcome barriers and achieve positive results. The 2011 Campaign culminated in a final report, which was distributed back to participants and community leaders.

The community input we receive from the 2011 Community Matters Campaign directly informed the launch of our Youth Civic Education initiative. In 2012, CityClub and Guiding Lights Network launched the Youth Civic Education Awards to reward excellence in existing civic education programs that serve middle or high school-aged students; increase the visibility of civic education renewal; build a statewide network of practitioners and resources; and develop a model program that can be replicated in other places.

The goal of CityClub’s Community Matters Campaign is to create dialogue and inspiration to act; to engage our whole community with the data, urgency and opportunity for positive change, and as a result, to develop a more engaged community.

2011 Campaign Elements

Forums and Debates – In Person and Online – We presented in-depth, non-partisan information and opinion in King County offered by experts, community leaders and policymakers. Each program was re-broadcast on cable television statewide, and is available for streaming on the CityClub past events page.

Living Voters Guide – Again this year, CityClub partnered with the University of Washington Center for Communication and Civic Engagement and Department of Computer Science and Engineering to create the Living Voters Guide (LVG), which was developed by and for the public to discuss  initiatives and ballot measures. Through community deliberation, participants create opinion statements and recommendations for fellow voters. New in 2012, LVG will include all state and county level initiatives, referendum and ballot measures. Visit the Living Voters Guide at www.livingvotersguide.org .

Dialogues: The Great Citizenship Game – We hosted approximately 25 facilitated conversations—conducted live at diverse community gathering places including community centers, churches, non-profit organizations, businesses and residences. Citizens were invited to weigh in on their personal observations and recommendations. Participants played a game to determine the ingredients necessary for great citizenship, discussing and compromising as they form consensus and ultimately informing a larger conversation on reimagining civic education based on their outcomes.

Community Report – A report to policymakers, media and the public summarizing common ground observations and recommendations from participating individuals and organizations over the campaign’s duration. The report documented and archived on CityClub’s website and disseminated to journalists, community leaders and voters.

Click here to read the full report.

Thanks to our:

2011 CMC sponsors:

2011 Community Matters Campaign co-presenting organizations: 501 Commons,  Alliance of Nonprofits, Guiding Lights Network, Humanities Washington, Leadership Tomorrow, League of Education Voters, League of Women Voters, Municipal League of King County, Seattle Housing Authority, and Seattle Works.