Why Not Give a Strata Minute

An interesting and successful public engagement campaign from 2010 in Chicago has prompted me to think about how to get strata owner engagement in an easy and effective way.


At the second annual Open Cities conference held in Washington D.C. in November 2010 urban planning and policy practitioners, technologists and public officials to discussed how new media can help local governments and community organizations make cities better. One of the projects that was announced was Give a Minute Chicago, an effort by CEOs for Cities with support from the Chicago Architecture Foundation.


The project asks Chicago residents to take a brief moment to contribute their ideas about what would make them walk, bike or ride transit more often. Citizens can submit their ideas online or using a mobile phone. People’s input is creatively displayed on the Give a Minute website, and an analysis of all the input received will be provided to several key local officials. CEO for Cities plans to expand the concept to New York, San Jose and Memphis, Tennessee in the near future.


Give a Minute is a great example of how organizations and governments can use technology to encourage public participation on important urban issues. But it also that many people aren’t willing to spend more than a few seconds to participate in the public process of democracy.


To me that sounds like strata. Where owners have invested significantly in their strata building and rely on their investment for housing, income and asset accumulation but are not motivated to participate in any meaningful ways.


So, maybe the ideas behind Give a Minute and the technologies it uses could be used in strata buildings to develop owner (and resident) engagement, better assess needs and preferences and create feedback loops about issues, actions and outcomes.


It’s outside the strict requirements of strata laws and contracts … but that doesn’t mean it’s not a good idea.




Francesco …