ZPG, a national grassroots education and advocacy organization that addresses population and sustainability issues, developed Zero 24-7 <http://www.zero24-7.org> -- an Internet radio station designed to both educate and engage new audiences, particularly young, computer-literate, media-savvy target groups not responsive to direct mail or traditional news media. Using state-of-the-art web technology, Zero24-7's DJs produce a live, six hour daily mix of Indie-Progressive music, interviews, and public service announcements repeated three times a day, with no commercials, play lists, or song edits.The technology used by Zero 24-7 permits an infinite number of people to connect and hear their music and their message. On average, 1,000 people tune in to Zero24-7 each day, with listeners from all across the U.S. and more than 50 countries around the world. Zero 24-7 serves as an instructive model of how to merge progressive technology with progressive issues to engage widely dispersed, hard-to-engage target audiences. (To listen to Zero24-7 web radio, you need a computer with a sound card, speakers, and RealNetworks' RealPlayer G2 audio software, which can be downloaded free from the Zero24-7 web site).

Democracy Network (DNet), a joint project of the Center for Governmental Studies and the League of Women Voters, uses creative interactive web technology to spark online candidate debates and improve the quality and quantity of voter information. DNet allows the user to become the online "moderator" of candidate debates, in which the user can select the candidates and the issues the user wants to see. Since 1996, DNet has provided in-depth coverage of hundreds of campaigns including Presidential and congressional races, state-level elections, local office contests, and ballot initiatives via a searchable online database of text and multimedia content. This tool gives voters access to the latest campaign information provided by the candidates themselves (including positions on important issues presented in a comparison grid, biographical and donor information, and endorsements); online interaction  and debate among candidates, elected officials, community leaders, and other voters; and links to vital voter, campaign and media information. DNet increases voter understanding of important public policy problems, allows candidates to debate their positions in an "electronic town hall" before an online audience, and fosters greater civic participation and interaction between voters and candidates interaction between voters and candidates.

The Welfare Resource Exchange (WRE) is an information clearinghouse providing credible, reliable, and practical welfare reform information in order to help improve outcomes for children, youth, and families living in poverty in North Carolina. WRE aims to help low-income families move from welfare to self-sufficiency by enhancing the public’s understanding of and engagement with welfare reform and its implications. WRE offers advocates, nonprofits, faith communities, government officials, business leaders, welfare service providers and recipients access to the tools they need to make informed decisions and design effective programs. Through its Web site, monthly e-mail newsletter, the WREsources Update, and online database of promising practices, WRE links its constituents to laws, policy, proposed regulations, research and promising practices, and distributes timely, critical information on resources and promising practices in an easily accessible format. And, WRE encourages greater collaboration among organizations with a variety of viewpoints, decreases duplication of limited resources, increases effective communication, and ultimately helps improve services to those in need.

For 13 years, SeniorNet has provided seniors with lifelong learning opportunities and community-based computer education. During 1997 through 1999, SeniorNet (with support from MetLife) hosted a The Solutions Forum, a web-based online discussion designed to engage older adults in a collaborative process to generates ideas and solutions to real world policy issues. Five areas were addressed -- including: "The Future of Medicare," "Successful Aging," and "End of Life Issues" - through the use of online communication tools. Message boards allowed participants to interact with the subject matter, receive expert answers to their questions, and learn from their peers at their own pace within a given time period. Interactive polls provided quantitative data on participants' attitudes, opinions, and priorities. Online discussions were complemented by in-person discussions at designated SeniorNet Learning Centers. The results of each Forum deliberation were summarized online and in printed reports. The findings from the discussion centered on Medicare policy were distributed to key Congressional committees, representatives of the Administration, and to each member of the bipartisan Medicare Commission.

SVTC is a diverse, grassroots organization of environmental and neighborhood groups working to build a sustainable, non-polluting economy. By helping citizens learn how to conduct research, how to contact the appropriate agency, and how to share experiences with others, SVTC helps neighborhoods to hold industry and government entities accountable for water-use decisions involving the Santa Clara County Basin watershed. In order to ensure access to credible sources of information, SVTC utilizes e-mail, listservs, GIS technology, and digitally-created maps. These tools provide an online framework for collecting, evaluating, and sharing information among community actors. The maps have been incorporated into community outreach efforts, as well as curricula at the elementary, high school, and college level in California. Moreover, the e-mail and listserv distribution tools allow citizens and practitioners to share experiences on how they use the data, and exercise their "right-to-know."

Concerned with the role of special interest group dollars in this state's democratic process, the West Virginia Citizen Research Group (WVCRG) created a database of all campaign contributions received by all candidates running for statewide offices during the 1998 campaign cycle. No organization in the state had previously compiled such a database and made it available to citizens and other organizations for free. WVCRG therefore obtained hard copy donation records, which they then hand coded and typed into a database, amounting to some 20,000 records. The database made it possible for the first time for remote citizen groups with little or no access to the state capitol to follow the money trail and how special interest group dollars were influencing the efforts of their elected officials. Citizen lobbyists were also provided with information on how to effectively contact their legislators and mobilize other constituency members via a daily listserv and weekly e-mail newsletter that highlighted the legislative progress with respect to campaign finance reform bills. Their efforts resulted in the introduction and passage of a bill that, among other things, placed a cap on independent expenditures and prohibited a candidate accepting loans from any one other than banks, lending institutions, themselves or their spouses.