This blog stands on its own, but as part of its mission to cover public engagement, follows and reports on an important project based in King County, Washington called Countywide Community Forums, or CCF. If you live in King County and aren’t yet a “citizen councilor,” please register here. All data is kept confidential, and you’ll be notified when new “rounds” of the CCF process are unfolding, so you can either take an online survey on key King County policy issues – or personally attend or host a small meeting where after review of educational materials and a calm, considered discussion with your peers, you fill out an “Opinionnaire” survey. Either way, your opinion will count, literally, in the final reports presented to the King County Council and King County Executive.

The blog is also home to a special “site within a site” called Public Data Ferret, which highlights public documents, reports, databases and datasets posted on the Web, and which ties into broader efforts to promote government transparency and accountability – in part through community-based new media.