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Through
regularly scheduled online chats with officials, for
example, community members not only could obtain first-hand
information on issues of concern to them but also could
convey opinions. In this way, official functions could
devolve to the community level, eliminating the need
for people to stand in long lines at city center offices,
while informing and engaging the public in democratic
processes at the same time.
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...this
project needed to be looked at in terms of social
demand...to be tied into the daily lives of
residents...The citizens should become our allies
as well as feel a sense of ownership...
~ Sergio Aranda, Coordinator of the amic@s,
speaking about the evolution of the centers
Sergio Aranda
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During
the course of the activity, however, the amic@s
have developed a mind of their own. Due to a combination
of circumstances, including the decentralized nature
of the activity, extraordinary community involvement
and investment, a dynamic LearnLink advisor in Asunción,
and unavoidable delays in municipal programming material,
each Center has evolved in unexpected ways to respond
to the particular needs of its immediate neighborhood.
Sergio
Aranda, Coordinator of the amic@s, is reaching
out to local communities to help shape the CLC program.
For this reason, each Center is serving slightly different
needs and, as it assumes the personality and character
of its surrounding neighborhood. Based on past experience,
the newer amic@s are organized by management
commissions made up of local community residents.
Opening ceremonies have evolved into neighborhood street
festivals, including folk music and dance, balloons
and flags, speeches by local authorities, and so on.
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