Gordon leads City Accelerator Initiative

Engagement Lab executive director Eric Gordon, who is also an associate professor in Visual and Media Arts, is leading an 18-month initiative to promote innovative ways for city governments to engage with its residents on public policies.

The Citi Foundation and Living Cities on May 19 announced the participating cities are Albuquerque, Atlanta, Baltimore, New Orleans, and Seattle.

The $3 million City Accelerator Initiative aims to engage with city residents on important local issues, such as city planning, entrepreneurship, and healthcare.

“Each of these cities is focusing on a pivotal problem of our time,” Gordon said, “and they are eager to find ways to bring their residents into the work of solving those problems. I’m especially excited by their willingness to think outside the box.”

Gordon said he will work with each of the five cities to design approaches to engaging large segments of the population to gain feedback on public policy issues.

The Engagement Lab at Emerson College, for which Gordon serves as executive director, has used online tools to work with communities worldwide on municipal issues and has recently done work with the United Nations Development Program.

Read the official announcement on the City Accelerator Initiative.