We live in a world where, because of technology and access to information, people can cultivate expertise and contribute on projects or in industries where previously they would have needed formal schooling. The first great example of this was about 10 years ago when we saw “citizen journalism” born from the rise of blogs and social media.
Today’s movement is something we’re calling “citizen development,” meaning development is no longer just about developers — it’s about communities and the dynamics of information and innovation flow.
Several circumstances of today’s society have allowed citizen development to flourish in the past few years.
Affordable access to the Internet and high-performance devices has resulted in a general increase in digital literacy. This means many everyday citizens can articulate the requirements for an innovative digital service that could help them in their daily lives. And because of access to low-code tools and online education, they can actually be involved in the process of getting ideas off the ground.
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