It’s not hard to diagnose society’s problems, and it’s all too easy to complain about them. But now, a local group of passionate individuals have come together with a new
project aimed at helping people to interact and improve Athens with the help of technology.
Based around a user-friendly website and an interactive smartphone app, City of Errors allows people to upload video and pictures of a social “error” and a proposal for a solution. The app also has a social media aspect, allowing users to see what others have done to help their community. “We want to highlight that the city is yours,” says Marianna Christofi from the project, at an event they held at Athens’ Impact Hub, a centre for community initiatives. “Instead of just complaining, we hope that people will be motivated to take action.”
The application aims to engage people with their communities, and reward those with high engagement. For example, people might earn awards for conducting the most community service, such as being crowned “King of Recycling” for picking up garbage. The idea is to “gameify” the idea of community involvement, with users being ranked in order to inspire competition.
The team also have high hopes that their application might eventually play a positive role in the education system, if they succeed in creating a child-friendly version. It
could both prove helpful in the classroom, and teach children to get involved in community initiatives from a young age.
Nevertheless, the project of City of Errors has met with some resistance. According to Christofi, there are two kinds of people who have turned against the project, both of whom are in denial about the difference the project could make. Some are simply selfish, and indifferent to society’s problems. Others object on the grounds
that the online platform excludes groups who do not have access to a smartphone or a computer. To the latter, Christofi replies that “every era has its media, and this is that of our generation”. And it’s through their choice of medium that City of Errors is reaching their target groups.
Other objections to City of Errors turn on the name itself, which has attracted a certain amount of controversy. In a city which has already had more than its fair share of bad press, many have questioned whether they should be highlighting even more problems. But Christofi and the team strongly believe in their name. They will
neither adopt a new one, least of all in order to attract financing. In their quest to want to pull people out of denial of the city’s “errors”, keeping this name is vital.
The project’s goals are many and ambitious. They want to foster a new spirit of collaboration, while themselves achieving financial sustainability. They want to develop and launch a children’s version of the application. And ultimately, they want to expand into other cities, highlighting the “errors” of every social environment in order to bring about change and improve communities. “We can all make our cities better,” says Christofi.
At the end of the day, City of Errors wants to tell a story about Athenians, and the work they are doing to improve their city. Realising that there are still so many
enthusiastic and community-minded Athenians has been a great boost for the team. “When people are so excited, it motivates us,” says Christofi.
Source: enetenglish