Elia Brugnoni
email: elia.brugnoni@e-lios.eu

Alberto Polzonetti
email: alberto.polzonetti@e-lios.eu

Matteo Sagratella
email: matteo.sagratella@unicam.it

Innovation and Governance: the Role of Sharing Economy

Keywords: sharing economy, governance, innovation, sustainability, testability, open society

The sharing economy originates from the development of new business models that help to record important data concerning economic development, by showing they can attract the attention of investors and the public at large. This paper tackles with the main issues related to technological development and to the ever increasing predominance of intangible or immaterial goods thus focusing on the so-called 'sharing economy'. The players and the interests involved have been observed, together with the conflicts that institutions are called to anticipate and manage. Some principles that may offer some inspiration have been suggested too. Our objective was to show how the sharing economy may be considered as a remarkable economic resource for Italy in terms of both employment levels and tax revenue growth. In fact, it could be a great opportunity to establish new companies that, by implementing new business models, would have a positive effect on the industries that are currently suffering from the economic crisis and are relegated to grey areas or illegality. By evaluating the existing critical aspects of the Italian context in relation to industry regulations and governance, the paper aims at suggesting some pragmatic solutions to develop an ecosystem to facilitate the emergence of innovative companies that could boost employment. Mobility, tourist hospitality, work and training sectors have been taken into consideration.

Introduction

The emergence of new technologies, which are ever more powerful but also cheaper to produce, originates from the exponential growth of transistors' complexity, as the so-called 'Moore's law' had foreseen 50 years ago by envisaging that the power of microprocessors would double approximately every two years, at the same cost. For example, if a Volkswagen Beetle, in 1971, had undergone the kind of technological improvement forecast by "Moore's law", today, 'you would be able to go with that car 300.000 miles per hour. [START_REF] Sneed | Moore's Law Keeps Going, Defying Expectations[END_REF] Lately, such an impressive technological advancement has produced sensational effects, also thanks to strategic business choices. As a result, large companies producing microprocessors have been marketing on a large scale less powerful processors, but at increasingly lower prices. This kind of marketing policy allows higher funding needed to develop top range products that are ever more powerful and competitive, but also likely to be replaced within a short time. The huge offering of low-priced microprocessors and the need to use such an enormous computing power, formed the basis of the simultaneous development and spreading of the Internet and of its applications. At the end of the 90's, the pastures of new business opportunities came to light and, new economic, social and political visions, or even some reformulations of the same, have also emerged, at times. However, the very first steps of the various approaches were made through software development.

The pressure exerted by the new peer-to-peer approach for the exchange of information led to the questioning of intellectual property models, as well as to many opportunities for new companies, services and professions, at the same time. Up to then, the virtual web world set some limitations to such trends, but from then on the process of integration of the two realities has started. However, a common theme for this multifaceted phenomenon is the technology's power to change society and people's lives within a scenario where resources are becoming increasingly scarce and the choices imposed on society more difficult. In particular, the so-called 'sharing economy', or collaborative consumption economy, was initially so defined by Prof. Yochai Benkler, from Yale Law School, in 2004. [START_REF] Benkler | Sharing Nicely: On Shareable Goods and the Emergence of Sharing as a Modality of Economic Production[END_REF] Sometimes the opportunity to develop an economic and social context consistent with a certain moral vision of life has led to consider the sharing economy as an alternative to the capitalistic system 1 . Many have already used very convenient and advantageous services such as Uber, Lyft, Airbnb, Upwork etc. that allow users and owners to get into contact. That's the reason why some believe that rather than a sharing economy, the one that is taking shape could actually be an accessibility economy, where, also due to the enduring economical crisis, people try to get some extra income or through new, low-cost purchase opportunities.

Sharing Economy and Accessibility Economy -Is There Room

for Both?

The vision of sharing economy that 'purists' (i.e. those who see it as essentially local, horizontal and community based) have, appears to be in contrast with the actual working of companies operating at global level. Nevertheless, the continuous contamination between the two approaches is quite remarkable.

That is clearly shown by the evidence that many of these companies, which now appear to be almost monopolistic ones, up to a few years ago were small startups themselves, having a limited geographical scope and a small community of users. It seems that there is enough room for both approaches.

The dynamic 'creative destruction' foreseen by Schumpeter seems to be confirmed, while new perspectives, expectations and problems are also emerging. To provide an example of the current state of the international debate, it may be interesting to consider the point of view of Robert D. Atkinson, President of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, based in Washington D.C. who, in spite of his progressive stand, is quite critical about the ambiguities existing both in the United States and, particularly, in Europe.

In this case, the basic assumption is that economic progress should be accompanied by the creative destruction originating from technological progress. The role that progressives should play is to be supportive of innovation (and not act as populists by slowing it down), and increase factors of production, by helping workers, adjusting to the changes that are taking place.

According to the Innovation Technology & Innovation Fundation's founder, the progressive movement is or should be dealing with the continuous transformation of economy and its institutions. However, as Atkinson points out, the progressives show an ambiguous attitude about such transformation, since they are concerned about 'balances within the social-democratic society'.

The fast technological innovations and connectivity increase have led to a multi-direction development of new companies and business activities that have often overflown into more traditional sectors and, therefore, have been redefined. Given the above scenario, there is a need to tackle how the change is taking place, not only within the market but within society too. A conflict arise again, i.e. the conflict between the interests of those who, legitimately, intend to innovate by offering new value to consumers, and the interests of those who have been living, or have lived, thanks to a particular order that was sometimes justified by the intervention of political authorities.

Interests and Problems Generated by the Sharing Economy.

Nowadays, we witness great transformations concerning the organization of various sectors, such as mobility, tourism, education, which are facilitated by a technological gearing.

Mobility and Transport

Within the mobility sector, there are small and large companies offering new services which can compete with those operating within a sector that hasn't changed for decades. The introduction of mobile connectivity and the immediate availability of information provide the opportunity to fulfill an increasing transport demand and, at the same time, to use existing resources in a more efficient manner.

An interesting example is that of Bla Bla Car: The company manages to do that thanks to social communication tools, that enable it to reach a large number of users (both car owners and potential passengers), and by highlighting the opportunity to get to know new people while saving on travel costs. Technology has helped to tackle such a lack by offering a win-win solution where everybody wins, environment included.

In the last few years, car-sharing services have shown an enormous growth. In fact, it is anticipated that 12 million people will be using such services worldwide, by 2020. In Italy, 220,000 people used car-sharing services in 2014, the car fleet totaled about 3,000 cars in 11 cities, and in 2013 the sector's growth reached 70%. Milan is the leading city of Italian car-sharing2 , with 80% of the market. The sector boasts a robust expansion trend and an ever increasing integration with public transport services.

In other cases, such as the Uber or Lyft ones, a service that was directly competing with traditional taxi services generated a harsh conflict with taxi drivers. The political authorities of many countries were rather embarrassed by such a clash. The embarrassment of political decision-makers became even greater if taxi licences were considered as they are very expensive and sometimes taxi drivers invest their lifetime savings to purchase them. How the public transport system is going to evolve is still unknown. Will taxis be able to improve their offer? Will the new companies, such as Uber, succeed in breaking the strict regulatory barriers that prevent their full development, or will they have to adjust to them? Will political authorities be able to manage the transition towards new mobility models ?3

Tourism

Within the tourist hospitality sector, the opportunity to rent out rooms or apartments for short periods of time has provided a new source of income to many property owners. On its website Airbnb advertises that, so far, its platform has been helping 60 million guests to found a room in over 34,000 cities around the world. Such figures mean that, compared to 2013, the number of people using their services has increased by 6 times.

Although less noisily, professional hoteliers have started to stick up their nose about such a phenomenon that has began to weaken their stance within the industry.

Moreover, they also feel that they're facing a kind of unfair competition because of the poor control that public authorities have exerted over the phenomenon in question, especially in relation to tax issues. In this case, perhaps the poor and fragmented regulatory efforts are the reason why such a market cannot fully develop since it is affected by a lack of clarity and generates uncertainty. Lombardy's regional authority, for example, has started to keep into consideration this increasingly growing trend through its new tourism law 4 that's been recently issued.

Education and Training

Within the higher education sector, the development of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) is changing the education approach completely. This trend is about free online courses that are offered through special platforms, such as Coursera or EdX, by some of the most prestigious universities in the world, which are accessible to those who wish to study using such a system. The new method offers the opportunity to carry out in-depth studies not only to university students but also to working students 5 or professionals.

In 2014, there were over 2,500 courses available, with over 400 universities involved around the world, and the leading Coursera and EdX platforms totaled about 14 million students . The courses, cover a wide range of topics and may also focus on particular ones by ensuring a rather high quality level. Universities all over the world have started to invest a great deal of resources on this sector as such courses help to promote the universities globally, by starting to establish a relationship with potential students who may decide to enroll for traditional courses too, at a later stage.

The sector shows a significant growth due to several reasons, such as the high costs of university education, especially in the United States, and the use of big data tools for the management of exam results that, being online, have become a new source of business for IT platforms. Academic knowledge may now be shared free of charge in almost every country originates from the remarkable demand for education at a global level.

After all, the more information available, the stronger is the need for intellectual tools that may be used to make sense of such an increasing amount of data.

Work and Employment

On the other hand, as regards work and employment, the effects of the economic crisis are being tackled through online platforms that help people looking for a job and employers getting in touch. However, they are not just some basic notice boards, but are rather similar to proper employment centres. Instead of just offering temporary or permanent jobs, the new platforms also advertise offers and requests for spot jobs.

Nowadays, it seems that work is increasingly becoming a matter of coordinating skilled professionals. Within this field, conflicts arise between those who consider temporary or occasional jobs negatively because they don't provide proper worker protection, and those who see them as a great opportunity to create new businesses by using the technological gearing available, as well as to offer skills and knowledge to a wider audience of millions of potential employers.

The History of the Relationship between Innovations and Institutions

The conflicts between different interested parties have always existed, but the growth of available wealth and the economic, social and political development are relatively new phenomena. That is probably why it may be worthy to recall some examples from the past to better understand common issues and differences.

Great Britain found its way towards an unprecedented development before the end of the 17th century. In fact, the Glorious Revolution of 1688 opened the Kingdom to those political, social and legal reforms that were going to pave the way for the Industrial Revolution that would take place a century later.

As properly explained by Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson in their book 'Why Nations Fail' [START_REF] Afzal | Economic Origins of Dictator-ship and Democracy[END_REF], such a transformation in Great Britain was driven by a new social class, the bourgeoisie that put forward new values and interests in contrast with the traditional aristocracy and great landowners. The clash between those classes concerned very practical matters, such as private property regulations or, for example, the protectionist regulations that halted the development triggered by the technical revolution. Therefore, such matters would work as a divide between the parties.

It is also important to consider how the country's institutions (first of all, Parliament and Common Law Courts) were able to facilitate the economic transformation and to accompany the social metamorphosis brought about by the industrial revolution of the 19th century.

Innovations, Institutions and Legitimacy

The question to be asked is whether the new economic models envisaged for the forthcoming decades are also going to be accompanied by a new legitimacy of governments and institutions that are meant to regulate such an economic, social and political transition. So far, the picture described explains why the sharing economy is important not only to understand how new technologies are going to be used, but also to understand how society, politics and institutions are going to be influenced.

A sharing economy can bring technological innovations to sectors of the economy which haven't been affected by productivity increase and that have actually been spared process and organizational innovations for decades.

Convergence of Interests -Between Idealism and Pragmatism

In contrast with past experiences, the main distinctive feature of this historical period is that a convergence of interests may often exist for individual players.

The end of a society that's divided into classes, where each one features its own identity that is linked to its own production, professional or revenue generating activities, opens up a world where mobility reigns, not just in terms of employment, but also as regards the use of resources. However, it's probably still impossible to see how the discourse concerning the sharing economy's nature is going to evolve.

For some, the nature of sharing ought to open up to an exchange system that is legitimate for its own sake, i.e. one that is based on principles related to the equality of the parties involved. Such principles are considered intrinsically ethical and should not require any interventions from institutions or external government to validate them. This is the hope of Internet enthusiasts who would like to bring about a network that would overcome the interests of more complex organizations, so to introduce a new alternative model to consumerism.

The Network Effects and Phenomenon Governance -Exclusion Reduces Efficiency

In a sharing economy, therefore, there is a growing network of players that are not easy to categorize, being simultaneously service consumers and suppliers.

Furthermore, another feature of this network is the role played by those operating as part of both sharing and traditional economy. Can democratic institutions evolve quickly enough to support the next steps of the transition and promote economic development? On the other hand, will other routes be found to achieve a direct legitimization of the economic system? As a first comment, which could also be a starting point, it could be said that an effective governance of the network in question may stem from the awareness that none of the parties involved could be excluded without risking to reduce the importance of the network itself.

The Obstacles to Innovationthe Role of Institutions

Sometimes, political power sets some insuperable obstacles to technological innovation because it perceives the consequent modification of the status quo as a threat to its authority and stability, rather than a risk for those who have a direct interest in the lack of changes within a given economic sector. For example, in England, in 1589, when William Lee showed his revolutionary knitting machine to Queen Elizabeth I, he was told that the implementation of such a tool would have taken the work away from many citizens who would then become beggars [START_REF] Afzal | Economic Origins of Dictator-ship and Democracy[END_REF].

How and Why Should Innovation be Encouraged?

Innovation is an advantage if the benefits produced are extended to the whole society. This can only happen if an innovation incorporates the ability to be sustainable, if the costs of its implementation are carefully evaluated and its benefits are clearly evident.

The opening of institutions to new requests and interests is a very important aspect of innovation success. Actually, it's an essential requirement for it. In an era where the world's population amounts to 7 billion people, and raising, the usable resources needed to ensure a decent living in increasingly larger areas of the planet are becoming more and more scarce. This fact on its own has the potential to trigger conflicts. On the other hand, technological innovations also offer the solutions to drastically reduce the costs of such resources, thanks to the implementation of new usage methods and new organization models.

Innovation Methods -Sustainability, Testability and Market Opening

The principle of sustainability, with its many aspects, has now become deeply rooted in the innovations to be implemented. The sharing economy is going in the right direction as regards the efficient use of resources and the spreading of a greater sensitivity about environmental issues. Although more and more often innovations originate from the bottom, , nevertheless, sometimes it's impossible to evaluate the possible effects that their introduction may have on the market and on society.

However, even though a product originates 'from the bottom', it's not always possible to transfer it to another market if the product in question is not fit to fulfill the existing demand. Therefore, new ideas or inventions are not always ready to do that 'jump'.

Sometimes, unfortunately, such opportunities may be hindered by bureaucratic constraints. In Europe, however, the recent moves made by the European Commission towards a Digital Single Market6 seem to be going in the right direction. More consistency amongst regulations concerning data protection, intellectual property and consumer rights would favour the development of small and medium-sized companies. That would also encourage the establishment of large digital organizations, similar to those that usually originate in the United States rather than in Europe.

Moreover, cities are the ideal place where new ideas may become actual innovations likely to produce contamination effects.

After all, the city itself does challenge the status quo, by attracting so many people who wish to change their social status. However, the fast pace imposed by technological changes and the remarkable exchange opportunities brought about by globalization, have transformed some industries significantly, whereas others have remained unchanged.

Why Innovate? A Question To Be Answered by Comparing Costs and Benefits.

The remarkable growth opportunities offered by today's economy are associated with the creation of value. That is facilitated by the increasingly sophisticated use of intangible goods which are difficult to evaluate, such as algorithms, information, software, huge databanks, patents, copyright, the implementation of sizeable business models, organizational skills, corporate capital, knowledge, abilities and strategic networks [START_REF] Onișor | Marketing and Business Development between Idea, Scientific Discovery and Innovation[END_REF].

It is reckoned that in the most developed countries the contribution of intangible goods7 to the real economy, in terms of GDP, is the double of that provided by material goods.

However, the problem with assessing the value of such goods makes it often difficult for institutions (either political or financial ones) to support apparently risky companies without a profit or an electoral return. In parallel, from a political point of view, there is some resistance in supporting those initiatives whose effects are uncertain. In particular, political and regulatory barriers have their own precise meaning if they are put into context, both historically and socially. They tend to ensure that some categories of citizens are not affected by competition or changes.

How can such an enduring protection be justified when circumstances change? How can any institutions that are supposedly open to their citizens' requests ignore the cost-benefit ratio deriving from protecting a given category or industry (so that it can remain the same), whereas the value generated by innovations could make more resources available for the benefit of a large number of citizens-consumers?

The Existence of a Right to Innovation

Replying to such questions, it is possible to perceive a right to innovation that the institutions ought to keep into consideration, learning from past experiences. Such a right naturally emerges from the free exchange taking place in the markets. Sometimes, its explosive power reveals itself in real life and may be quite ruthless. Some players are rewarded, whereas some risk to be pushed out of the market if they don't adjust their offer. Institutions are forced to face the dilemma: whether it's worthy to risk losing some of their political influence by reducing protections, compared to the support they may obtain by opening up to new opportunities that would benefit the rest of the community.

How Can the Right to Innovation be Accomplished? Criticalities and Suggestions

Since the city is a place where innovation develops more easily, the regulatory aspects of economy have to be dealt with at some higher institutional levels. Therefore, the sharing economy in Italy involves a series of players operating at different levels.

The ways in which new platforms (i.e. access tools that are essential for the sharing economy), introduce themselves to the markets recall the general problems affecting the ecosystem of innovative startup companies.

In particular, there are several limitations concerning:

The taxation of new companies; Bureaucratic constraints for companies;

The ability of the university system to educate and train skilled ICT staff; Difficulties in obtaining loans from financial institutions.

The number of investments made through risk capital or venture capital is significantly lower compared to other European countries. Although Italy comes second, after the UK, in terms of percentage of innovative small and medium-sized companies, only 0.002% of GDP is invested in venture capital, against a European average of 0.024%. 8 Furthermore, there is no entrepreneurial culture that would lead operators to accept the risk of embarking in a startup company 9 .

However, there are young workers, trying to access, or access again, the employment market through startup companies. They are actually creating new entrepreneurial experiences that very often, unfortunately, don't last long 10 , due to the negative aspects described above 11 .

Nevertheless, these are valuable experiences as they help to come to terms with the real world and provide training opportunities based on actual economic conditions. Fragmented regulations and regional financing do not allow for a proper use of the already scarce financial resources 12 . There is no place where such innovation experiences could be put together so that they would attract the best available talents, as well as Italian and foreign investors, according to international best practices 13 . Some ideas and suggestions to be developed in order to tackle the above limitations include the following:

8 Annual report by the European Venture Capital Association ( EVCA ).

9 Moreover, young people have a kind of cultural resistance about joining startup companies and/or starting their own, as mentioned in the Standard Eurobarometer UE for 2013 : although 50% of European consider the possibility of starting their own business, only 5.8% decides to take that route.  Simplification of bureaucratic, administrative and fiscal requirements and improvement of legal certainty;  Regulatory simplification at both national and supranational levels, as regards the sharing economy to enhance transparency and trust;  Establishing partnerships between public and private sectors -in particular with the research and university compound -and directing resources on some key topics concerning economic development;  Facilitating the aggregation of small and medium-sized companies, also in view of open innovation processes and of the spreading of collaborative models;

 Ensuring that the education and university system, together with companies and public administrations, aims at providing the education and training needed within the business scenarios, as well as continuous training for freelance and employed professionals, in order to expand the entrepreneurial culture.

  10 Summary of the last OECD research on entrepreneurship -August 2015 http://bit.ly/1GNqSw211 For an analysis of entrepreneurs'/startuppers' reasons, see the study by Pais e Sirigu. http://bit.ly/1MeNUMw12 White Paper for Startup, by Digital Magics 201513 As an example, see Israel's legislative efforts to attract investors from abroad, aiming at attracting investments in the following industries: manufacturing, communications,

						Commentato [MS1]:
	IT,	medical	technology,	biotechnology,	nanotechnology,	research.
	http://bit.ly/1P7DIYE

The future of business: what are the alternatives to capitalism? Jules Peck, the Guardian, http://bit.ly/1EWNdmb

From the report 'Nutrire la Mobilità nel Futuro' (Feeding Future's Mobility) presented by AlixPartners, at Forum Automotive di Milano, 2015

The Italian Competition & Market Authority, in a reply dated November 2, 2015 to a request made by the Ministry of Interior about the use of platforms, such as Uber, urged legislators to regulate the sector in order to ensure competition, as well as road and passenger safety by defining a 'third kind' of drivers, in addition to taxi drivers and car rental drivers http://bit.ly/1P7BCYI.

'Lombardia, giro di vite per le case su Airbnb: check in e tassa di soggiorno come in hotel' (Clamping down on Airbnb accommodation: check-in and city tax like in hotels) http://bit.ly/1iFQbo8

Data provided by edSurge 2014 http://bit.ly/1MNaKuY

European Commission's website on Digital Single Market http://ec.europa.eu/priorities/digital-single-market/

Disrupted Innovation: Financing innovative small firms in the UK', Sameen, Quested, Big Innovation Centre 2013


A Min Tjoa

Simon Tjoa
email: simon.tjoa@fhstp.ac.at

The role of ICT to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)

Keywords: Sustainable Development Goals, Millennium Development Goals, WSIS, Code of Ethics, Impact of IT-work on Sustainability, Karlskrona Manifesto

This paper is aiming at illustrating the potential of ICT for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals which were declared by the United Nations in 2015 as binding for all nations of our planet addressing both developing and developed countries. ICT must play a significant role if the SDGs should be achieved as projected in 2030. The paper gives an overview of some of the existing efforts in this area and is written as an appeal to all professionals, scientists and IT-professional and their organization to take a holistic approach for all ICT-activities and projects to always include and monitor the effects of their work on the SDGs. The impacts of ICT on sustainability are twofold: On the one hand there might be negative effects on sustainability such as the generation of electronic waste, on the other hand ICT is definitely an enabler to more efficient resource usage, education and business operations which is critical success factor for achieving the SDGs.

Introduction

On 25th to 27th of September 2015, the heads of state and high-representatives of United Nation's member nations agreed on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which supersede the Millennium Development Goals. The Millennium Development Goals (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015) can be regarded as one of the most important and successful initiatives to eradicate poverty in modern history. The eight crystallized goals of the MDGs have been further translated into practical steps which have deliberated over one billion people from an extreme level of poverty and have achieved a better standard of life in many parts of the world. [START_REF]United Nations: The Millenium Development Goals Report[END_REF] Without any doubt one cannot neglect the eminent role of science, technology and innovation as well as the dissemination of these new technologies in most of the practical steps leading to a society where no one should be left behind.

The aim of the SDGs is to set the objectives for driving forces all over the world to tackle the world's largest challenges such as fighting poverty, eliminating inequalities and achieving sustainable economic growth. The agenda comprises 17 SDGs which are further refined to 169 targets addressing economic, social and environmental aspects. [START_REF]United Nations: Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda For Sustainable Development[END_REF] A key aspect of the agenda is that the defined goals address all countries. All countries of our planet are obliged to perform their level best to consider and enforce all their efforts to achieve within one generation a significant reduction of inequalities in their societies. This should be achieved in least developed countries, developing countries, middle income countries but also in the developed countries. Furthermore, this development should take into account a balancing of the economic, social and environmental factors towards a safe and sustainable planet. [START_REF]United Nations: Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda For Sustainable Development[END_REF] No other domain in the recent past had such a strong influence on the development of countries and societies than information and communication technologies (ICTs), especially in driving today's innovation, efficiency and effectiveness across all sectors. ICT has been the fastest growing sector since a generation. The World Summit on Information Societies (WSIS) in 2003 and 2005 was devoted to the potential of ICTs towards the vision of "a people centered, inclusive and development-oriented information society" where everyone can have the potential to access and share information available (on the Web). Bridging the digital divide is essential for all people left behind to utilize potentially available information to create new businesses and (local) knowledge. We should be aware of the importance of local content in the local languages for taking advantage of information on the Web. The fundamental aim of the WSIS process was the improvement of peoples' life through a better use of ICTs.

The eleven action lines of WSIS are highly relevant for all the necessary efforts to achieve the SDGs.

This paper is aiming at sketching the enormous potential of ICT to accomplish the SDGs which cover the three dimensions of economic prosperity, social equity and environmental sustainability in 2030.

It is necessary for an organization like IFIP to make it explicit to all people working in the field of information processing to align their work to the SDGs which are global in the sense that they are binding for both the developed and the developing countries.

Role Models within Computer Societies on Direct or Indirect Initiatives toward SDGs

The International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) [START_REF]International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP): About IFIP[END_REF] is an umbrella organization for information technology societies in more than 56 countries all over the world. The role of information technology on society has been discussed in different working groups of the Technical Committee 9 "ICT and Society" since 1976. Already in 2005, an IFIP Working Group for "ICT and Sustainable Development" [START_REF]International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP): TC 9 ICT and Society -Aims and Scopes[END_REF] was established to provide the platform for discussion and research on this eminent important topic for building a global society where nobody should be left behind which is also sustainable for future generations.

This IFIP Working Group covers the necessary promotion of research on the interactions amongst the social, environmental and economic impacts of ICT towards a sustainable society for generations to come. This includes the coordination of policy issues concerning synergies of a multi-stakeholder and people-centered driven information society and sustainable development targets.

The scope of this working group also covers the important aspect of early warning on (possible negative) impacts of ICT-applications and innovation to enable a strategic forecast of coming new technologies in the area.

In their Code of ethics ACM defines 24 imperatives which set ACM's expectations of a member. Many of the mentioned principles such as "Contribute to society and human well-being", "Be honest and trustworthy" or "Know and respect existing laws pertaining to professional work" reflect ethical behavior which in a very general manner build prerequisites for ICT to be a facilitator in reaching the SDGs.

In line with these principles, the Code of ethics of the ACM/IEEE-CS Joint Task Force on Software Engineering Ethics and Professional Practices defined the following eight principles for software engineers [START_REF]ACM/IEEE-CS: Software engineering code of ethics and professional practice[END_REF]:" 1. PUBLIC -Software engineers shall act consistently with the public interest. 2. CLIENT AND EMPLOYER -Software engineers shall act in a manner that is in the best interests of their client and employer consistent with the public interest. 3. PRODUCT -Software engineers shall ensure that their products and related modifications meet the highest professional standards possible. 4. JUDGMENT -Software engineers shall maintain integrity and independence in their professional judgment. 5. MANAGEMENT -Software engineering managers and leaders shall subscribe to and promote an ethical approach to the management of software development and maintenance. 6. PROFESSION -Software engineers shall advance the integrity and reputation of the profession consistent with the public interest. 7. COLLEAGUES -Software engineers shall be fair to and supportive of their colleagues. 8. SELF -Software engineers shall participate in lifelong learning regarding the practice of their profession and shall promote an ethical approach to the practice of the profession"

All eight principles can be assigned to the sustainable development goals. As a "pars pro toto"-example we will illustrate the relevance of these code of ethics principles for software engineering professionalism by means of a (hypothetical) "Volkswagen-like" case on the basis of the eight principles described above (i.e. a case where software has been built to deliver manipulated environmental data to fulfill existing binding environmental standards). Since all the details of the Volkswagen-case are not yet clarified and disclosed we do not refer to the "real" Volkswagen-case. However, we want to show that compliance to the ethical principles may even prevent enormous damages in "Volkswagen-like"-cases.

For the first principle ("Public") ICT-workers should very much internalized the idea that the usage of their products must be compliant with the environmental, economic and social requirements of its deployment. In our case it could be imagined that already in the requirement analysis phase one could have detected a conflict of interest between the goals of the software to be built which could lead to manipulated results and the public interest of clean air which are defined by the binding environmental standards (both national and internationally for the target countries where the cars are sold).

Principle 2 ("Client and Employer") is also breached due to the negative effects on car-buyers and ultimately also for the employer. For a car maker the penalties of such breaches can go into billions of US-dollars and it would be the task of every ICT-worker to warn the employer about the consequences of the misuse of software. Introducing a mandatory independent monitoring and/or auditing of SDGs for large projects with possible very damaging impacts could be an approach which should be considered in the future. This could also be important for all kinds of breaches which would cause reputational damage (e.g. child-labor).

The principle of "Judgement" is a prerequisite for an overall ethical-driven work of ICT-workers in their (team) work. For educational institutions and universities, the inclusion of SDGs into the curricula will be an important target of the near future. ICT-managers should handle SDG-requirements with equal importance to all other qualitycriteria within their software development process. The reputation of ICT-workers can be very much advanced by the potential of software to reduce negative impacts on sustainability. Lifelong learning is prime for keeping track with newest developments where ICT will function as one of the most important enabler for achieving the SDGs in 2030.

Recently through the initiative of a few prominent software engineering scientists in the area of requirement engineering the so-called Karlskrona Manifesto for Sustainable Design is formulated where inter-alia the following disposition of existing awareness within the software engineering community is stated. [START_REF] Becker | The karlskrona manifesto for sustainability design[END_REF] The coherent and proper analysis of the initiators of the Karlskrona manifesto on the existing increasing consciousness within the software engineering community lead to the proposal of an initial set of principles and commitments [START_REF] Becker | Requirements: The key to sustainability[END_REF]: " Sustainability is systemic. Sustainability has multiple dimensions. Sustainability is a concern independent of the purpose of the system. Sustainability applies to both a system and its wider contexts. Sustainability requires action on multiple levels. System visibility is a necessary precondition and enabler for sustainability design.

Sustainability requires long-term thinking. (i.e. We should assess benefits and impacts on multiple timescales, and include longer-term indicators in assessment and decisions.) It is possible to meet the needs of future generations without sacrificing the prosperity of the current generation. (i.e.Innovation in sustainability can play out as decoupling present and future needs. By moving away from the language of conflict and the trade-off mindset, we can identify and enact choices that benefit both present and future." [START_REF] Becker | Requirements: The key to sustainability[END_REF] A forerunner of the initiatives towards the role of ICT to combat global warning was the ICT-GLOW-initiative in 2010/2011 which leads to the establishment of the International Conference on ICT as Key Technology for the Fight against Global Warming in Toulouse, France in 2011. [START_REF]Proc. Information and Communication on Technology for the Fight against Global Warming , International Conference ICT-GLOW[END_REF] A special track on "Cloud Computing for the Public Sector" completes this gathering of experts in the field. Already here the two aspects of the involvement of ICT for sustainability has been pointed out, i.e. on the one hand issues on the potential of ICT as enabler for the reduction of CO2-emissions and on the other hand, issues on the urgent need of systems which are designed and operated in an energy-aware way leading to a minimization of energy consumption. [START_REF]Proc. Information and Communication on Technology for the Fight against Global Warming , International Conference ICT-GLOW[END_REF] "Sustainability design as introduced by Becker et. al. in the context of software systems is the process of designing systems with sustainability as a primary concern, based on a commitment to these principles." [START_REF] Becker | Requirements: The key to sustainability[END_REF] The above mentioned initiative in the field of requirement engineering clearly shows the holistic character of sustainability. However, one can state that this initiative is skewed to the environmental dimension of the SDGs which is still the main focus in the Northern hemisphere. The economic dimension of SDG for achieving economic prosperity and social equity is not in the center of the manifesto.

An approach which does not single out the aspect of eradication of the global imbalance was sketched in [START_REF] Tjoa | Next decade of social, economical and ethical challenges -perspectives of a networked world[END_REF] where the challenges of this decade with respect to necessary adaptation of the ICT-work of scientists and professionals concerning social, economic and ethical challenges are briefly summarized.

Especially aspects of the elimination of economic poverty due to the use of mobile devices in the area of e-commerce and aspects of the use of crowd-sourcing for e-health applications were discussed.

In 2013, a very successful conference-series ICT for Sustainability (ICT4S) was started in Zurich with the support of the universities in Zurich with a predominant focus on environmental sustainability. [START_REF]ICT4S: ICT4S 2013 -ICT for Sustainability -The Challenge of Making It Real[END_REF] It can be stated that a lot of efforts are still needed for the holistic investigation of the use of ICT to achieve the SDGs. Therefore, in the next section we point out sectors of ICT which could significantly contribute to the success of SDG by 2030.

Possible Contribution of ICT to the SDGs

Hilti and Aebischer [START_REF] Hilty | ICT for Sustainability: An emerging research field[END_REF] categorize the effect of ICT as follows: Level 1 ("direct effects") describe the negative effects of ICT which comprises the production and disposal. Level 2 ("enabling effects") are those effects which arise from the application of ICT. Unlike to level 1, these effects can be either positive (e.g. substitution effect, optimization effect) or negative (e.g. induction effect, obsolescence effect). Level 3 ("systemic effects") refer to long-term impacts of ICT services on socio-economic systems. These impacts can also be positive (e.g. sustainable patterns of production and consumption) or negative (e.g. new risks).

Further, the authors [START_REF] Hilty | ICT for Sustainability: An emerging research field[END_REF] outline how different domains in computer science, such as Environmental Informatics or Computational Sustainability, contribute to the achievement of sustainable ICT.

According to an Ericsson report [START_REF]ICT & SDG -How Information and Communications Technologies ccan Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals[END_REF] can accelerate the achievement of the SDG in five ways: (1) ICT spreads in a very fast way which can be best demonstrated by the uptake of mobile technologies reaching seven billion subscribers in 2015. (2) ICT can help to save costs in various sectors such as health, banking, or education. (3) ICT can help to point out the awareness of new technologies. Unlike in the past, information about new technologies can spread at enormous speed using social networks, mobile technologies or other electronic channels. (4) National and global information flows are enhancing and upgrading new applications. ( 5) Through the usage of ICT low cost online platforms can be established to educate workers in new technologies. [START_REF]ICT & SDG -How Information and Communications Technologies ccan Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals[END_REF] In its mapping, WSIS mapped its action lines to the sustainable development goals. For each mapping in the table a detailed rationale is given in the report. In the following we briefly outline the action lines as described by WSIS. [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): WSIS -SDG Matrix[END_REF] The action line C1 ("Role of Government and all Stakeholders in the Promotion of ICT for Development") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] highlights the importance of the buy-in from governments and stakeholders in order to establish the Information Society. C2 ("Information and communication infrastructure: an essential foundation for the Information Society") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] demands adequate infrastructure enabling affordable and ubiquitous access to ICT. C3 ("Access to information and knowledge") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] outlines that individuals and organizations should take advantage from access to information and knowledge using ICT. C4 ("Capacity building") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] states that every person should have the knowledge and skill set to profit from the Information Society. Further, actions how ICT can support education and lifelong learning activities are outlined. C5 ("Building confidence and security in the use of ICTs") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] highlights the central value of privacy, trust and security for the Information Society. C6 ("Enabling environment") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] points out actions to increase the confidence in the Information Society. C7 ("ICT applications: benefits in all aspects of life") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] highlight that ICT can improve the sustainable development in various areas such as e-government, e-business, e-learning, e-health, e-environment, e-agriculture, and e-science. Within the WSIS-SDG matrix C7 is refined into the individual applications. C8 ("Cultural diversity and identity, linguistic diversity and local content") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] stresses that cultural and linguistic diversity poses a critical success factor in the development of an Information Society. C9 ("Media") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] outlines the importance of media in all its forms in the development of an Information Society. C10 ("Ethical dimensions of the Information Society") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] emphasizes the relevance of ethics within the Information Society to avoid abusive usage of ICT. C11 ("International and regional cooperation") [START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): Plan of action[END_REF] points out that international cooperation is indispensable in order to eliminate the digital divide. In the following we highlight possible opportunities for a subset of the SDG. Due to space limitations we decided to tackle a few goals in more detail instead of providing an abstract view on every SDG. SDG 4: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.

ICT plays a major role in order to achieve quality education and lifelong learning possibilities as expressed within SDG 4. Platforms, such as Massive Open Online Courses (e.g. Coursera, Udacity, edX, iVersity, Khan Academy) which are available for free through the Internet highlight how (even specialized) knowledge can be made available to a wide public. Furthermore, online social networks and Web 2.0 platforms (such as YouTube) are widely used to spread knowledge via the internet in order to facilitate lifelong learning.

Another success story in providing information and education to everybody is the online encyclopedia Wikipedia which is a free-of-cost encyclopedia developed by using the knowledge of the community. [START_REF]Wikipedia: From wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[END_REF] Open Access publications, such as Springer Open, are gaining popularity and support the accessibility of scientific contributions. Further, research social networks, such as Research Gate, establish the exchange between researchers and scholars all over the world. Open Source products (e.g. Linux, LibreOffice, Eclipse) and initiatives pose alternatives to expensive software suites and minimize thereby inequalities in education.

In order to design content on the internet in an inclusive way, the W3C started his Web Accessibility Initiative. [START_REF]World Wide Web Consortium (W3C): Designing for inclusion[END_REF] Initiatives setting common standards in education of digital competencies, such as the European e-Competency Framework (e-CF) [START_REF]European e-competence framework 3.0[END_REF] and the ICT profiles project [6] building upon, highlight which ICT competencies should be taught in order to address today's challenges. Although released 2014, the competency framework already addresses sustainable development.

SDG 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. So called smart cities envision more effective usage of resource in urban areas supported by ICT. (Research) initiatives in the domain "intelligence transport system" will contribute to improvements in traffic planning. Self-driving vehicles which are currently one of the hottest innovations in car industry highlight how ICT could be an opportunity for aging society to keep mobile.

Smart metering systems and smart distribution systems can support the sustainable usage of electric power. Analogue to the usage of electric power smart distribution and management systems are currently under research to facilitate the efficient usage of water. ICT platforms enable participatory urban planning projects where citizen can express their opinions. eGovernment systems open up the possibility to complete administrative processes from anywhere.

Furthermore, ICT is key technology in assisting decision makers and responders during disasters. Thus, in the future ICT systems have to be created supporting the objectives of the Sendai framework. [START_REF]UNISDR -The United Nations Office For Disaster Risk Reduction: ICTs and the Sendai Framework[END_REF]

Joint Proposal of ICT indicators for the Sustainable Development Goals indicator framework

This proposal has been prepared for the expert group meeting on an indicatorframework for the post-2015 development. It contains ICT indicators (e.g. individuals using internet or E-waste collection rate) and available datasets (e.g. datasets collected by ITU or UNU) which are required to calculate the impact on sustainability. [START_REF]Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development: Background note: Joint proposal of ICT indicators for the Sustainable[END_REF] It should not be unmentioned that non-profit organizations have taken many initiatives in the efforts to instrument ICT as an enabler to achieve the SDGs. A prominent example is the SDG ICT Playbook of NETHOPE, representing more than 40 international non-profit organizations, which provides guidance on how ICT can support the achievement of the SDG. Therefore, SDG are linked to sector demands that could profit from the application of information technologies. These ICT solutions are further mapped to key underlying technologies, challenges and recommended methods addressing the challenges. [START_REF]NETHOPE: SDG ICT Playbook -From Innovation to Impact[END_REF]

Towards a compliant ICT-working effort for SDGs

It is evident that the use of ICT has also facets which endanger the environment of our planet, e.g. the problem of electronic waste, cheap labor in the production process of IT-equipment etc.

More importantly however, as it has been pointed out above, ICT will play a most important role to achieve the SDGs. The ICT-scientific-community has to be aware that this role of ICT as an enabler is a very noble one. Especially in the "pure" academic world unfortunately still there exists the tradition to depreciate the role of a discipline as an auxiliary science.

In the opinion of the authors it is high-time to a) consider the impact of all our work as ICT-scientists and professionals with respect to its three dimensions of SDG in achieving economic prosperity for all, social equity and environmental sustainability.

IFIP has committed in its Milan Declaration in 2008 that the ICT profession should be founded on the essential elements of professionalism Competences (including knowledge), Integrity, Responsibility and Accountability and Public Obligation. In 2016 it should be mandatory that the notion of responsibility should be coined to all aspects of the SDG. [START_REF]WCC 2008 Declaration on ICT Professionalism and Competences[END_REF] In the following we want to exemplarily point out just a few areas within the ICT-landscape where scientists and other professionals could contribute to the fulfillment of the SDGs or at least plays a role in mitigating economic, social and environmental disasters.

A few examples should illustrate the above role of ICT:

-In the field of Software Engineering it will be essential that both the compliance with Code of Ethics and severe sustainable monitoring of large software projects are considered as instruments to prevent environmental damaging software as described above in Volkswagen-like-cases. Taking the Karlskrona Manifesto as a compliance-guideline for Software Engineers would have prevented such a disaster. -In the area of Sustainable Supply Chain Management one could use advance text mining and Bayesian Networks techniques to detect child labor in the supply chain. [16] -Methods of crowd-sourcing could be used to early detect epidemics and agricultural plagues using big-data techniques. -In education the MOOC-approach of disseminating knowledge for higher education also to the third world is an example for a successful impact of ICT.

Here we can mention the LEJ Knowledge Hub of Pakistan as a role model where thousands of Courses are delivered by world authorities in Science, Engineering, Agriculture, Social Sciences, Economics and other fields are freely available at school, college and university levels.

[12] -In the area of Disaster Risk Reduction, ICT has achieved very successful which are originated in developing countries. Ushahidi's success in many catastrophes as the earthquake in Haiti shows us that open source software can play a key role. [START_REF]Wikipedia: Wikipedia -ushahidi[END_REF] It should be mentioned that IFIP has just established an "IFIP Domain Committee on IT in Disaster Risk Reduction" where an interdisciplinary bundling of IT-knowhow and other disciplines should enable significant disaster risk reduction.

Conclusion and Future Work

In this paper we emphasize the important role of ICT to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, the so called SDGs (2016-2030) which follow the Millenium Development Goals-MDGs (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015). In contrast to the MDGs the SDGs are binding for all countries developed and developingand cover holistically the economic, social and environment dimension. We are convinced that the conformance to the Code of Ethics which significantly include "sustainability" should be self-evident for every IT professional as in other disciplines the Hippocratic Oath is binding for medical doctors.

However, it will be an important requirement of the next future that for all ICT-projects and enterprises sustainability is included as a new dimension which is monitored by all internal audit functions of the involved organizational entities. For this reason, we are convinced that auditable standards and best practices on internal sustainability controls as well as performance indicators are required to ensure the conformance with these new objectives.

Fig. 1 .

 1 Fig.1. WSIS Action Lines -SDGs Matrix[START_REF]World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS): WSIS -SDG Matrix[END_REF]


Rebecca Rumbul
email: rebecca@mysociety.org

ICT and Citizen Efficacy: The

Keywords: ICT, Civic Technology, Digital Democracy, Efficacy 1

des établissements d'enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés.

Introduction

The proliferation of civic technologies, a form of non-profit ICT, around the globe has gained pace since the advent of early civic participatory websites in the early 2000's, with significant funding being allocated to the NGO sector for the development and implementation of such sites, and with improvements in connectivity and access to hardware occurring in many developing countries. Civic technology is defined as a nonprofit technology that seeks to empower and engage citizens through the facilitation of information exchange between citizen and government, leading to greater governmental transparency and accountability. Often included under the umbrella of 'e-gov' stud-ies, it stands apart from traditional concepts of e-government in its creation and maintenance by non-profit organisations. The purpose of such civic technologies is primarily to empower citizens through enabling some form of civic or political participation and in facilitating the flow of official information, whether that be on a specific policy subject, a specific citizen complaint, or information on parliamentary proceedings. This study examined whether civic technologies are having an impact upon those individuals that use them, specifically, whether using civic technologies to access information instigates, or alters, the personal efficacy and belief of user-citizens in their ability to hold their governments to account. Research into the medium-long term impacts of civic technologies upon citizen attitudes is scarce, in part due to the small scale of organisations running these sites, in part due to their youth, and in part due to the transience of the user experience. One of the early architects of civic technologies, mySociety, is based in the UK and operates a suite of Open Source civic technology platforms that enable citizens to participate in civic activities, whether that is through parliamentary monitoring site TheyWorkForYou, through making Freedom of Information requests via WhatDoTheyKnow, or through reporting maintenance issues to local authorities via FixMyStreet. Escher [START_REF] Escher | TheyWorkForYou.com. Analysis of users and usage for UK Citizens Online Democracy[END_REF] examining mySociety website users in the UK, noted that a significant volume of users were first-time users with individual and particularised interests. However, it has also been shown that, to a limited degree, such digital platforms correlate with increased community involvement in an offline capacity [START_REF] Cantijoch | It's not about me, it's about my community[END_REF]. Cantijoch et al's research [START_REF] Cantijoch | It's not about me, it's about my community[END_REF] demonstrates that, whilst individual interests drive initial online participation, the very act of online participation may alter the subsequent attitudes or actions of citizens. What is not currently clear is what attitudes towards the use of these civic technologies themselves, and towards government, are developed by citizens in the process of their action. Civic technologies enable participation, but to what end? Civic technologists themselves describe their aims variously as enabling transparency to facilitate the accountability of, or the exertion of power over, government institutions [START_REF] Rumbul | Who Benefits From Civic Technology? mySociety[END_REF]. This study examined the attitudes of citizens using civic technologies in the UK, South Africa, Kenya and the USA. Quantitative data was collected via online surveys, as well as via online analytics programmes to address the question of whether use of civic technologies increases personal external efficacy, alters the confidence citizens hold in their respective governments, and whether specifically, that can be attributed to their ability to participate via civic technologies.

This research is both novel and significant in its approach. Civic technologies have been subject to a much lower volume of scrutiny in their role in citizen participation than social media platforms or dedicated petition sites, however, these websites have been recognised by governments and commentators as a potentially effective route to diversifying and broadening participation [START_REF] Bertot | Using ICTs to create a culture of transparency: E-government and social media as openness and anti-corruption tools for societies[END_REF][START_REF] Olphert | Citizen participation and engagement in the design of e-government services: The missing link in effective ICT design and delivery[END_REF]. This study sheds light on whether those assertions may be correct, and provides substantive evidence of attitudinal change in citizen's engagement with civic activities. This study also illuminates previously unexamined public attitudes towards civic technologies, delineating the confidence citizens have in the civic technologies they are using, and the confidence citizens have or develop in their governments through the use of civic technologies.

Efficacy, Confidence and Participation

Significant volumes of individuals now use the internet as one of their primary sources of news and political information [START_REF] Graham | Of course it's true; I saw it on the Internet!: critical thinking in the Internet era[END_REF][START_REF] Johnson | Choosing is believing? How Web gratifications and reliance affect Internet credibility among politically interested users[END_REF][START_REF] Kenski | Connections between Internet use and political efficacy, knowledge, and participation[END_REF], and many use it as their primary medium of personal administration, whether that takes the form of using online banking services, purchasing consumer goods, or arranging a family holiday. Internet users therefore have a reasonable level of efficacy in navigating their online environment. Citizens in many countries do not, however, exhibit high levels of personal efficacy in their civic or political spheres [START_REF] Bromley | Political engagement, trust and constitutional reform[END_REF][START_REF] Forrest | To vote or not to vote? An exploration of the factors contributing to the political efficacy and intent to vote of high school students[END_REF][START_REF] Francis | What We Now Know about" I Don't Knows[END_REF]. Political efficacy has been described by several authors as possessing two distinct constructs, distinguishing between 'internal' and 'external' dimensions of the concept of efficacy [START_REF] Balch | Multiple indicators in survey research: The concept "sense of political efficacy[END_REF][START_REF] Converse | Change in the American electorate[END_REF][START_REF] Kenski | Connections between Internet use and political efficacy, knowledge, and participation[END_REF][START_REF] Niemi | Measuring internal political efficacy in the 1988 National Election Study[END_REF]. Whilst internal efficacy concerns the understanding of one's own ability to understand and participate, external efficacy refers to the extent to which citizens believe governments and authoritative institutions will be responsive to citizen demands or participation [START_REF] Niemi | Measuring internal political efficacy in the 1988 National Election Study[END_REF][START_REF] Finkel | Reciprocal effects of participation and political efficacy: A panel analysis[END_REF]. The literature suggests that citizen beliefs concerning government responsiveness directly affects the extent to which citizens will choose to participate [START_REF] Niemi | Measuring internal political efficacy in the 1988 National Election Study[END_REF][START_REF] Abramson | The decline of electoral participation in America[END_REF][START_REF] Sjoberg | The effect of government responsiveness on future political participation[END_REF].

The digital availability of political and governance-related information does not necessarily mean that individuals will alter their approaches to engaging with civic activity [START_REF] Kenski | Connections between Internet use and political efficacy, knowledge, and participation[END_REF], however scholars have pointed to internet connectivity as a tool for enhanced democracy and participation [START_REF] Anderson | Cautious optimism about online politics and citizenship[END_REF]. The study of political efficacy has historically centred around traditional forms of political participation [START_REF] Finkel | Reciprocal effects of participation and political efficacy: A panel analysis[END_REF][START_REF] Craig | Measuring political efficacy[END_REF], and in recent years, the equivalent actions conducted through digital means [START_REF] Bennett | Young citizens and civic learning: Two paradigms of citizenship in the digital age[END_REF][START_REF] Dimitrova | The effects of digital media on political knowledge and participation in election campaigns: Evidence from panel data[END_REF]. Such activities include verbal or financial support of political campaigns, dissemination of partisan policy messages and participation in meetings and elections. Civic participation, however, encompasses a broader field of concern than that specific to party political ideals, providing space for individual participation and engagement in civic issues external to partisan boundaries. Individual citizens are able to raise issues, investigate them, and communicate them through digital means in a quicker and potentially more impactful fashion than in the pre-digital age. Whilst this form of political participation largely concerns organised issue-specific lobbying and campaigning, the digital ability to conduct such activities also enables citizens to pursue very individualised participatory agendas, often referred to as 'particularised contacting' [START_REF] Cantijoch | It's not about me, it's about my community[END_REF][START_REF] Teorell | Political participation: mapping the terrain[END_REF]. Some scholars have considered this as a diminished form of political participation, ranking it amongst routine administrative activities [START_REF] Parry | Political Participation and Democracy in Britain[END_REF][START_REF] Verba | Voice and Equality: Civic Voluntarism in American Politics[END_REF] or failing to distinguish these activities from larger-scale contact concerning macro-political concerns [START_REF] Teorell | Political participation: mapping the terrain[END_REF], however these activities, conducted through civic technologies, have been shown to have specific impacts upon citizen behaviour in regard to both community-based civic activity [START_REF] Cantijoch | It's not about me, it's about my community[END_REF][START_REF] Cantijoch | Civic Websites and Community Engagement: A Mixed Methods Study of Citizen Empowerment Initiatives[END_REF] and in engaging with government concerning micro-level individualised issues [START_REF] Sjoberg | The effect of government responsiveness on future political participation[END_REF]. It is possible to posit, therefore, that this particularised form of civic engagement may impact the levels of confidence in government and its ability to account for its actions that citizens hold.

The concepts of confidence and trust in government have been examined by a number of scholars, many of whom have identified a trend in decreasing levels of trust and confidence in government [START_REF] Levi | Political Trust and Trustworthiness[END_REF][START_REF] Nye | Why People Don't Trust Government[END_REF]. In consideration of such findings, several authors have emphasised the role that accountability and transparency hold in potentially reducing levels of mistrust [START_REF] Norris | Is Your Local Government Plugged In? Highlights of the 2000 Electronic Government Survey[END_REF][START_REF] Clayton | The New Face of Government: Citizeninitiated Contacts in the Era of E-government[END_REF][START_REF] Tolbert | The effects of e-government on trust and confidence in government[END_REF]. Accountability and transparency scholars have identified the role that publication of official information plays in achieving what is perceived to be a more accountable government [START_REF] Pasquier | Organizational barriers to transparency a typology and analysis of organizational behaviour tending to prevent or restrict access to information[END_REF][START_REF] Ball | What is transparency?[END_REF]. The citizens ability to review information about or produced by governments and politicians is one aspect of increasing personal external efficacy [START_REF] Kenski | Connections between Internet use and political efficacy, knowledge, and participation[END_REF][START_REF] Usluel | Can ICT usage make a difference on student teachers' information literacy self-efficacy[END_REF][START_REF] Bundy | Australian and New Zealand information literacy framework[END_REF]. In considering the emergence of digital methods for accessing information, authors [START_REF] Bertot | Using ICTs to create a culture of transparency: E-government and social media as openness and anti-corruption tools for societies[END_REF][START_REF] Norris | Is Your Local Government Plugged In? Highlights of the 2000 Electronic Government Survey[END_REF] identified the potential of e-government in particular in facilitating an increase in transparency and accountability in government administration and service delivery, potentially resulting in increased efficiencies and better communication that would bolster citizen confidence in government overall. However, studies of the weaknesses or risks associated with e-government have identified links between citizen trust in government and propensity to use e-government systems [START_REF] Bélanger | Trust and risk in e-government adoption[END_REF], and the tendency of e-government initiatives to become bureaucratically rationalised rather than customer-focused [START_REF] Colesca | Increasing e-trust: A solution to minimize risk in e-government adoption[END_REF][START_REF] Moon | Same bed, different dreams? A comparative analysis of citizen and bureaucrat perspectives on e-government[END_REF]. Civic technologies, unlike e-government, operate at the intersection of e-government and civil society. Run in the majority of cases by NGOs, civic technologies seek to expand the ability of the citizen to engage with governance mechanisms in a way rational to the user, whether in a form of particularised contacting in which the citizen interacts with an official individual, or in a citizen audit role in which the citizen is able to acquire and review official information on the activities of governments and politicians.

This study examines the external efficacy of participants through their particularised use of civic technologies, to determine whether levels of efficacy and confidence are altered through the use of such platforms. The study will examine any alteration in such levels of efficacy, analysing this alongside perceptions of government behaviours in relation to the existence of civic technologies.

Data and Methods

This study examined five civic technology sites operating in the UK, USA, Kenya and South Africa. It draws on 4,371 survey responses of civic technology users, and focuses on examining basic demographic information and public attitudes data. The participating sites were FixMyStreet (UK), TheyWorkForYou (UK), GovTrack (USA), Mzalendo (Kenya), and People's Assembly (South Africa). Each of these civic technology platforms provides users with either the opportunity for particularized contacting (FixMyStreet) or citizen parliamentary audit (TheyWorkForYou, GovTrack, Mzalendo and People's Assembly). Site users were invited to take part in surveys, either following a transaction (if the site was a transactional one (such as FixMyStreet), or following a minimum period of time spent on the participating site (such as Govtrack). Sites with a high volume of users (UK & USA sites) invited a sample of visitors to take the survey, in the UK this was 1 in 2 site users, and this was 1 in 4 in the USA, whereas 100% of users of lower-volume sites (South Africa and Kenya) were invited to take the survey to ensure a sufficient sample. The survey was conducted online, consisted of approximately 19 questions (certain additional questions were added at the request of the participating platforms) and no personally identifying information was requested. The first nine questions concerned personal information such as age, educational attainment, employment status and employment sector. The remaining questions concerned individual user attitudes to civic technology and government. These questions focused on how users perceived the benefit of the tool they were using above other methods of reporting or receiving information from government, their confidence in governance structures, and their perceptions of the effect of civic technologies upon government behaviour. Questions did not directly ask about levels of confidence or trust, rather, they focused on the individuals assessment of government behavior, perceived ability to hold government to account, and expectation of government behaving in a different manner in the event that the information and functionality of civic technology sites did not exist. The data was collected between February 2015 and October 2015.

Findings

The data collected demonstrates a wide demographic spectrum of civic technology usage. Individuals of all ages are using civic technologies. In the USA and UK, the majority of users were found to be older, with 48% of users of FixMyStreet in the UK over the age of 55, and another 22.6% of users falling into the 46-55 category, meaning that over 70% of users of FixMyStreet in the UK are over the age of 45. Similarly in the USA, 55% of users of GovTrack register as over 55, with another 19% in the 46-55 category, totalling 74% of users over 45. These results contrast significantly with the results from Kenya and South Africa, where only 14% and 34% respectively are over the age of 45. These findings have significant implications for the development and implementation of ICTs as tools for good governance, as the demographic divides indicate that these tools may only be operationalized by distinct sections of the population of each country. The findings of this research demonstrate that the users of civic technology generally tend towards identifying as male. Whilst there is less of a gender imbalance in the USA, the UK demonstrates a fairly high user gender imbalance, with 64% of users of FixMyStreet in the UK compared to 52% in the USA (GovTrack) identifying as male. Previous studies [START_REF] Escher | TheyWorkForYou.com. Analysis of users and usage for UK Citizens Online Democracy[END_REF][START_REF] Cantijoch | It's not about me, it's about my community[END_REF][START_REF] Cantijoch | Civic Websites and Community Engagement: A Mixed Methods Study of Citizen Empowerment Initiatives[END_REF]] on mySociety's UK deployments reinforce this finding, with their studies finding a male user dominance of 66% and 64% respectively. This gender imbalance is also evident in Kenya and South Africa, with Kenya evidencing 72% of users identifying as male, and South Africa 68%. Citizens using civic technologies in all studied areas tended to be well-educated, with between 40-60% of citizens holding at least degree-level qualifications, however fewer were economically active, with less than 50% of users across all sites in full-time employment.

The data shows that users of civic technologies hold a pre-existing interest in politics, with over 70% of users confirming at least daily consumption of political news. This is perhaps unsurprising given the political and government content of such civic platforms. The number of users believing that such civic platforms enable them to hold governments and politicians to account was extremely high across all platforms surveyed, as shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1. Survey results for the question "Do you believe that being able to see this information enables you to hold your political representatives to account?"

Over 94% of individuals in the UK felt that being able to see the information displayed through civic technology site TheyWorkForYou enabled them, at least in part, to hold the British government to account. In the USA, this was 95%, in Kenya 94%, and in South Africa 91%. The data also alluded to the level of mistrust felt by many citizens in government behavior. In Kenya, 83% of users believed that their ability to scrutinize government information via the Mzalendo platform directly affected how politicians behaved, and over 92% believed that politicians would behave differently if the information displayed on Mzalendo was not available digitally in the public domain. These figures were mirrored in all five cases, demonstrating similar levels of belief in both developed countries (UK and USA) and developing nations (Kenya and South Africa). These beliefs demonstrate a level of efficacy directly related to the user's ability to review political or governmental information online.

Significantly, a high volume of users across the four parliamentary monitoring platforms were unaware of other methods of accessing the information contained on those sites. Fully 48% in Kenya, 55% in South Africa, and 68% in the UK were unaware of other methods of accessing parliamentary information. Similarly, 55% of users of particularised contacting civic technology site FixMyStreet in the UK were unaware of any other method of reporting issues to their local authority. This is not surprising, as many official government and parliamentary websites are difficult to navigate, search or interact with, and many official organisations do not upload the volume or quality of information contained on the civic technology platforms. Whilst across the four countries studied access to official information is generally granted, it can also be a lengthy or cumbersome process to acquire, and the process itself is not widely understood.

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Conclusion

This paper makes a novel contribution to the study of online participation through civic technology and e-democracy platforms. Substantively, it has provided a new insight into the question of how citizens use civic technologies, and how these platforms shape their attitudes and opinions concerning their respective governance structures. The comparative cases used demonstrate the differences and similarities in usage and attitudes in both developed (UK and USA) and developing (South Arica and Kenya) countries. Through combining questions concerning attitudes to government, and perceived effects of civic technologies upon government behavior, the research has shown a clear indication of increased political efficacy amongst civic technology users.

The overarching question posed by this research concerned individual external efficacy in civic engagement. In particular, the research examined whether citizens using civic technologies developed increased personal efficacy as a result of using these digital tools. The findings of this research suggest that the use of civic technologies could contribute to increasing the external political efficacy of individual citizens. The majority of citizens using civic technologies in a citizen audit or particularized contacting role confirmed that the use of such platforms enabled them in their own way, at least in part, to hold their respective governments to account. This self-reported level of efficacy does not confirm that these individuals would actually use the information or experience acquired via civic technologies for further political or civic activities. However, taking into consideration the linked findings concerning the majority of individuals that knew of no other way to engage with government, the data does indicate that the very ability to engage with governance mechanisms rationally through digital means is sufficient in itself to increase individual external efficacy.

The significance of this finding is emphasized by the lower levels of trust exhibited by participants. The second question asked by this research concerned the individual citizen perception of government actions and behaviours, and examined whether citizens felt that availability of information online in any way affected the conduct of government officials. The majority of participants believed that their ability to engage with their respective governments through civic technologies affected how those governments behaved, and believed that those governments would behave differently if these methods of engagement were not available. This is an important finding in relation to the question of citizen efficacy. External efficacy concerns the extent to which citizens believe that government apparatus is responsive to their demands. Through using the ICTs in the study and as a result of the existence of those technologies, citizen felt that government behaviours would in some way be different to government conduct in the absence of those platforms.

Lastly, this study examined the demographic and attitudinal spectrum of civic technology users comparatively across both developed and developing nations. The comparative examination of such data is of practical importance given the increasing use of ICTs and civic technologies in improving citizen engagement in developing countries. It is quite possible that civic technologies and their users differ greatly between nations, however this has not been demonstrated in the literature. The data gathered for this research demonstrated the significant variability in demographic trends between countries, and highlighted clearly the dangers of generalisation in analysing demographic data across borders. Viewed as a whole, the data presents a very rounded and healthy picture of the users of civic technology. However broken down by country, the data evidences clear demographic divisions in the use of, and access to, civic technology. The most stark comparative results concerned the age profile of ICT users, with older individuals of 45 and over dominating civic technology usage in the UK and USA, whereas under-45's dominated usage in Kenya and South Africa. Female users were also under-represented in the study in all countries with the exception of the USA. These demographic findings demonstrate that the implementation of ICTs cannot be standardized across borders. Whilst ICTs have been shown in this study and by previous authors to have positive citizen outcomes [START_REF] Cantijoch | It's not about me, it's about my community[END_REF][START_REF] Sjoberg | The effect of government responsiveness on future political participation[END_REF][START_REF] Cantijoch | Civic Websites and Community Engagement: A Mixed Methods Study of Citizen Empowerment Initiatives[END_REF], in practice their development, implementation and usage will be nuanced and will need to accommodate local cultural differences in digital engagement. Given the demographic differences in civic technology usage examined in this research, the ability of ICTs to universally affect citizen external efficacy will be limited.

This study has presented a novel approach to examining external efficacy and government transparency through ICTs, however, further study of this growing sphere of activity is needed to fully uncover the true potential of civic technologies in improving citizen participation. Such digital solutions are increasingly being discussed by governments and NGOs as possible solutions to citizen engagement, however until more is known about the people that use these platforms, the way they engage, and how they feel about their engagement, their overall impact will remain limited.