Web in de Wijk - Web in Neighbourhoods

Acronym of the case:

WIN

Web address of the case:

http://www.webindewijk.nl

Country of the case:

Netherlands

City/region:

Emmen, The Hague, Almere, Amsterdam and Gouda

Posting Date:

22 November 2007

Last Edited Date:

07 January 2010

Author:

Kuiper Else Rose (Web in Neighbourhoods (WiN))

community | social-capital | e-skills

Type of initiative

Project or service

Case Abstract

Web in Neighbourhoods (WiN) is an approach with special educated social professionals (animators), who assist inhabitants of a neighbourhood to use ICT strategically in their daily life, Digirooms, spaces where people can meet and work, and a special designed toolbox. It enables them to experience the extra potential ICT can add and the fun: communicating with others nearby. It is a bottom up approach to stimulate self organization and cooperation. The inhabitants learn to cope and to take initiatives in all domains of life: work, care, hobbies, education, etc. Animators (social professionals with special designed media education) reach out to all individuals and help them to identify their ambitions, drive and needs. They discuss with the inhabitants the opportunities ICT can offer to achieve their personal goals in the community. WiN changes people from consumers into producers of websites by using a special toolbox. Instead of getting all kind of services they can assemble all services they have chosen and even start services of their own. Animators also learn people how to create networks and how to participate in them. In each neighbourhood there are Digirooms, places to meet and greet and where people can work on websites together. The get to know people, they work and inspire and help each other to learn more everyday. Working this way ICT is not the aim of the project but the tool to meet the wishes of the inhabitants in their daily life in contact with others in the community. Following their ambitions and drive they keep on working with ICT. Along the way they gain e-skills every time more. WiN works most of the time with people who have never thought of themselves in terms of someone who can use computers and make websites.

Description of the case

Domain

eInclusion

Topic

ICT and community development

Sector

Start date - End date

November 2002 (Ongoing)

Date operational

November 2002

Target Users

Target Users Description

WiN is a bottom-up approach for all citizens. The animators first approach non-profit initiatives and invites them to start. Also key-persons and professional social and community workers are invited to get acquainted with the approach. There are always approximately 10 groups active in a neighbourhood of 4.500 households to start with. By addressing all citizens the project can combine people who have something to offer with people with less to offer. The project teaches all because they can help each other. Traditional help is offered to groups at risk.

Scope

International | Local (city or municipality) | National

Status

Pilot

Language(s)

Dutch | English

Policy Context and Legal Framework

WiN offers people identity, empowerment and networking. It offers e-skills improvement which can contribute to employability. On a neighbourhood scale it offers intercultural contacts, social cohesion and a sense of belonging which contributes to the level of participation in activities and in political discussions. WiN can have effect on all domains of life.

Project Size and Implementation

Type of initiative

Training and education

Overall Implementation approach

Public administration

Technology choice

Not applicable/not available

Funding source

Public funding EU | Public funding national | Public funding local | Private sector | Charity, voluntary contributions

Project size

Implementation: €1,000,000-5,000,000

Yearly cost:

€1-49,000

Implementation and Management Approach

WiN is implemented per neighbourhood (around 10.000-20.000 inhabitants) and in order to implement it successfully the following is required: - a place and computers, where people can descend, meet and work, - workers which are or can be trained to be animators (social professionals with a special media education), - payment for extra development of the approach. (The amount depends on the number of inhabitants). In neighbourhoods WiN does not work with ICT teachers or ICT programmers to contact inhabitants, but with social professionals who are skilled in supporting people and stimulating networks. The WiN approach has been developed in five years. The approach is described but not in detail, since every location has specific demands of its own and the implementation has to be custom-made. The concept has also to keep up with the growth in ICT use and skills of people and the opportunities new technology can offer. Developing the concept, tuning it to the location and organising exchange between projects is done by the national board in close co-operation with the local projects. The national board of WiN has plans for expansion and is looking for partners to be able to scale up to more neighbourhoods.

Technology solution

To go beyond the process of handling computers and internet one needs simple software, so everyone can make content and use computers and Internet strategically for his own purposes. WiN developed a web based application, which everyone can handle. Neighbourhood portals are often made by ICT programmers. The software of WiN is based on suggestions of visitors and the knowledge of professional social software programmers. To stay in tune with new developments every six month new modules are added. The last module is My Portfolio online, where people can start an activity and invite people to join. If people have joined they receive â€˜complimentsâ€™ on their profile. It is meant to offer some self reflection on the value of voluntary work and it is related to formal competencies used by companies and Social Services. It is not easy to develop software which people use for daily purposes in neighbourhoods. The dynamics of Web 2.0 on a world scale are totally different from the dynamics in a local environment. E.g. Blogs are very popular on the world wide web, but seldom a success in a local community. Therefore special design for effective systems in neighbourhoods is needed.

Impact, innovation and results

Impact

WiN is used for sharing information (text and photoâ€™s in web magazines), communication with others (guest books, fora, links) and for organizational purposes: agenda, map and manuals with the publication of tasks and deadlines. Users tell us they feel more competent, they learn new things and get to know new people and new networks, and organizing becomes much easier. The idea about their neighbourhood changes sometime to the worse, but that does not seem to matter: it is more their place, it supports their feeling of belonging and pride. It is innovative to make people media wiser and to teach them how to use ICT strategically to their own benefit. To stimulate them to use web pages to create networks and participation in the context of neighbourhood even more. In Parkwijk Almere (4.500 households) in one year 663 webpages were built by 300 people. In four years in Bargeres, Emmen (4.300 households) 4.500 webpages were built and 1.500 people logged in. The WiN portals are visited by approximately 1.400 visitors a month. The Digirooms are visited by many citizens (in Emmen 2.900 people in 2006). 60% of them is without a job, 50% women, 14% handicapped. They are of all ages.

Track record of sharing

The project started in 2002 in Bargeres, Emmen, after a year it was implemented in The Hague, in 2004 it was implemented in Almere and then more neighbourhoods in Emmen followed. At present there are pilots in Amsterdam and Gouda. A national organization was founded to monitor the dissemination. Methods were developed and contacts with universities (in The Hague, Amsterdam) established which led to the implementation of the subject Social use of ICT in the curriculum of social workers. WiN has contacts in Italy, Spain, Sweden, England, Latvia. It founded Vit@l Society, a consortium which made a declaration on the new social use of the internet. This was supported e.g. the Nordic Council and the Baltic IT&T Conference 2006. It was addressed to the E-Inclusion Unit and handed over to Mr. Paul Timmers in Riga (2006). In 2008 the local initiatives in Emmen and The Hague will be embedded in the local structures with the help of social institutions and the local government. The other neighbourhoods are still in the implementation phase. In 2007 the national organization of WiN made a business plan in 2007 to be able to disseminate. There are plans for localization of the software to implement it in other countries, to publish a book on the method in spring 2008.

Lessons learnt

Lesson 1 - Workers in the social sector are not interested in computers and internet for their clients. The helpers are keeping the clients away from internet applications because they think it is not what they need. This is a hard lesson to learn. The workers can be persuaded to use the internet, bur that takes time and constant effort. Lesson 2 - In The Netherlands local social initiatives are about helping the underprivileged. WiN is community building between all citizens with a bottom-up approach including underprivileged. It is much harder then the initiators thought to interest these institutions and workers to work for all and stimulate people caring for each other. Lesson 3 - Making community software for a neighbourhood in a way that people respond is a special expertise. It asks for special design.

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practice Web in de Wijk - Web in Neighbourhoods