Find out the population of your hometown, and then use Census Bureau statistics to identify ten or more other towns of the same population. Look at the websites for these towns, and choose four or five that seem very different from each other. (If your hometown does not have a website, use the nearest town that does for comparison.) Analyze the websites for how they encourage citizen action in relation to the town. For example, do the sites ask citizens primarily to think of themselves as consumers of city services, or do they provide ways for citizens to get in touch easily with local representatives or each other to discuss and develop solutions to local issues? Use examples from your analysis to write a report that describes what you think are the best strategies a community can use to encourage citizen participation through its website.
Interview five or six people you know on your campus who are not involved in any organizations on campus and who do not seem to be involved in any aspect of civic life. Discuss with them their decisions not to be involved. Use what you learn to design and produce a brochure that—by addressing the concerns and reasons given by the people you interviewed—encourages others on your campus to be more involved. (Alternatively, design and produce a brochure that uses parody as a strategy to argue that no one should be civically engaged.)
