Mission

The e-Communities Task Force will discuss, develop, and recommend guiding principles that help localities design and activate community portals.  The Task Force will also gather best practices from the U.S. and abroad, identify resources for expertise and possible funding, and assist communities in self-assessment exercises.

This task force grew out of a need originally identified by the Governor's Commission on Information Technology. During regional meetings of the Commission, several communities expressed the desire to meet their citizens' needs for information, interaction and assistance without repeating the mistakes of those who had gone before. With so many localities in the Commonwealth, the most effective way to meet this need appears to be developing a blueprint for action that can be disseminated over the Internet, with the guidance of stakeholders, for communities of all sizes.

Working with industry, education, government, and non-profit partners, the task force will identify the core principles that underlie successful e-Communities. e-Communities are about much more than just putting government information and other services on-line. Their success depends on members of the community exercising local leadership and actively participating in commerce, information exchange, volunteer opportunities, school events, learning cooperatives, equipment sharing or other efforts.

Operation

With the assistance of Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology (CIT), and in partnership with the Office of the Secretary of Technology, the task force will review lessons learned by communities in Virginia and across the world and will meet with stakeholders from government officials to citizens to businesses and public entities. Task force work groups will consider recommendations for enabling government, education, business, nonprofits and others in building the community portal.

After an initial organizational meeting in Richmond, Va., working group meetings will validate elements of the templates as they develop and convene stakeholders with potential developers and partners.  A schedule for these meetings will be posted on the task force website, and may include Virginia localities such as West Point, Abingdon and Fairfax. In the interim, members will work through an Internet-enabled forum and in small work groups to consider specific issues.

Results

Within nine months from beginning operations, guiding principles and resources will be available via the Internet through a state-level technology portal such as www.innovationavenue.com.  Communities will begin working with these resources, and ongoing support channels will be developed.