A web-based framework for collaborative innovation

Abstract

Twenty-first century global change in most sectors is challenging us and our communities in the management and use of resources. The World Economic Forum has recognized the need for new approaches to enable collective action among both the leadership and concerned members of communities. We call this approach of working together to produce societal solutions collaborative innovation (CI). CI is part of web science as it brings together information networks of people and communities who use and augment the digital records related to common problems mediated by the web. This paper outlines an approach to CI based on dynamic asset-mapping and how it has been supported through a web-based framework that requires both communication and operations on a knowledge base or asset map. Based on the experience using the framework in designing and deploying over 70 systems that incorporate dynamic asset-mapping as a foundation for CI, it is clear that CI takes many forms. We illustrate some of these forms through specific examples in environment, socio-economic development and planning. We conclude that it is not possible to build a single set of tools to support CI and that the users need access to meta-tools and frameworks to implement tailored systems supporting CI directly rather than relying on people with in-depth knowledge of the technologies. We then outline some of the properties of a set of software meta-tools that have been used to implement these systems.