So unless you’ve been under a rock lately (or not in the Tech scene in Edinburgh), you will know that the Social Innovation Camp is rolling into town.
I’ve submitted two ideas of my own: GiveKnitting.org and Girls in Tech.
But I’ve been keeping an eye on the other entries, and wanted to talk about my favorite ones:
Their tagline is: “No one keeps track of political promises. Someone should.” – what more is there to say? As the submission points out, we need accountability from politicians and more of it. You only have to look at the scandal from MP’s expenses to be able to see how much we need political accountability. This is even more important as we head towards the next general election. We need parties to fulfill their promises; not just provide us with hollow election rhetoric which is discarded as soon as they get into power.
Although in saying this, we also need a counter-balance. If the website could also provide a section where people can vote to say that they do not want this promise (e.g. ID Cards) then that would make the platform even more powerful.
The idea: “crowdsourcing the development, maintainance, documentation and mapping of new and existing long distance walking trails.”
As someone who gets lost on long distance walks, I wholeheartedly see the need for this. Imagine this: out in the middle of nowhere, your google maps app doesn’t work and the only sign in front of you is a single arrow in a big field: you suddenly realise how nice it would be if there were more useful signs. You get back from holiday and read this – yes, it is a great idea.
Kudos
The idea: “The concept is to provide a site similar to http://www.elance.com but rather than companies paying freelancers, the freelancer gives up his/her time for free and the company pays the project costs direct to a charity.”
Volunteering your time for charity is a great way of giving something back. Part of the problem is that volunteering takes a fair chunk of time since most charities want you to take on a role rather than just a one-time job. This is one way to get freelancers to donate one chunk of their time with low commitment.
Food for the people, by the people
The idea: “A catering business that unites people with lower income and people who can cook but are not necessarily trained chefs.”
Provides a place for amateur wannabe Masterchefs to showcase their talent – Did I ever mention I’m a pretty awesomedecent cook? 🙂
Kate Ho 
The “political promise” idea reminded of wrongtomorrow.com who are providing a similar service for pundits. Basically they take note of predictions that are made, then flag them as wrong or right when they expire. Good way to get a feel for just how good a futurist or economist is at predicting the future.