Digital platform

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Background:
Both Scotland and the UK have committed to the delivery of the SDGs, domestically and internationally, and have also committed to the Open Government Partnership. In Scotland, the First Minister made a strong committed to the SDGs in July 2015.

We are keen to create a web-platform for the coordination and celebration of the UK’s efforts to achieve the SDGs, domestically and internationally. It is envisaged that in the first instance a website will be developed for Scotland (www.globalgoals.scot) which can later be mirrored for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Each of these sites would be distinct but interlinked.

We have permission from the UN and from Project Everyone, who developed the Global Goals brand and manage the international www.globalgoals.org website for the promotion of the Global Goals, to develop a Scottish national website using the same branding and content as www.globalgoals.org.

The new website, www.globalgoals.scot, would be very similar in design and feel to  www.globalgoals.org, with shared content (videos, images, graphics, etc) promoting the 17 SDGs. However, the majority of www.globalgoals.scot would be user-generated content: photos, videos and blogs uploaded by civic society organisations (NGOs, faith groups, churches, community groups, businesses etc) sharing information about what they’re doing within/towards a specific SDG.

www.globalgoals.scot would aim to:
 * Raise awareness of and build support for the Global Goals in Scotland, encouraging Scots to share content on social media
 * Encourage a sense of civic ownership and engagement in the Global Goals
 * Share compelling examples and case studies of what Scottish civic society (NGOs, churches, schools, universities, hospitals, etc) are already doing against each of the SDGs
 * Promote ‘meet ups’ and other upcoming events and activities in Scotland relating to each of the SDGs
 * Create a space for the UK and Scottish Governments, the UK and Scottish Parliaments, and Scottish Local Authorities to upload details of what they are doing within and towards each of the 17 Goals, and in so doing hold these organisations accountable to these commitments.

Proposed Website description:
www.globalgoals.scot should be relatively simple, colourful and engaging website, similar in content, tone and aesthetic to www.globalgoals.org.

The website should have dynamic content, with visitors able to themselves upload content including videos, photos, graphics, case studies, etc.

The website must be intuitive and attractive, accessible on all relevant devices including tablets and phones.

Homepage:

The homepage will be very similar to the www.globalgoals.org landing page, primarily composed of the 17 SDG icons, each linking to the relevant webpage. There will be an obvious visual hook to Scotland: perhaps a saltire in the background or an iconic Scottish image or theme. EDIT: we felt it would be more powerful to have an image of a real person that represents our ambition (who represents us?) for Scotland. We settled on an image plus quote provided by one of Scotland's poverty truth commissioners, who has real lived experience of poverty in Scotland, and speaks truth to power.

We will keep text to a minimum, just enough to introduce the goals and the tone of the site, saying something like:

“In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development, aiming to end extreme poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030.

“Scotland was amongst the first nations to embrace the Global Goals.

“This website creates a space for the people of Scotland to share and coordinate what we’re doing to advance the 17 Global Goals, and to ensure our Governments and Parliaments deliver on their Global Goals commitments.”

Below this the homepage will have the 17 SDG icons (6 x 3 grid) saying something like, click a goal to see what Scotland’s doing and how you can get involved. Each icon should link to that SDG’s page.

Below this we embed videos and other core promotional content from the globalgoals.org website.

There should also be a newsletter sign-up on the homepage, for those keen to be involved in Scotland’s delivery of the SDGs.

Separate to the 17 SDG links which will be the core content, we will likely also want tabs from the homepage to:
 * About us (with details of Open Government Partnership, SCVO, SMP etc)
 * Latest news (which we can populate with key updates)
 * Get involved (with links to the various calls to action)

Each SDG:

“We the People…”

When visitors click an SDG they are taken through to the civic society section of that goal which presents an array of content telling various stories about what schools, churches, NGOs, business, universities, hospitals, communities etc are already doing towards that SDG. It will be a combination of embedded videos, photos with short text, info-graphics and other eye-catching content. Anyone will be able to upload this content.

Every piece of content uploaded will have buttons to be able to share across social media and the immediate call to action for those visiting the site will be to help share what inspires them.

If successful, there would be a regular stream of dynamic content for each of the SDGs. In general, new content will appear at the top of the page but with discretion for the moderator to curate the precise order and layout.

The page should also include a side-bar with:
 * a twitter feed encouraging people to tweet, for example, using #SDG15Scot.
 * an ‘upcoming events’/’get involved’ space, with details of ‘meet ups’
 * We may also want to have a newsletter sign-up on box, for those keen to be involved in the delivery of this specific SDG

“Our targets”:

This page would have the detail of the targets and indicators, ideally with graphs and infographics to make it as engaging and readable as possible.

“Our Governments”

This page would have space for the UK Government, the Scottish Government and Scottish Local Authorities to provide information about what they are doing to progress this SDG. We will need someone in charge of government liaison and should make the ask at a senior level such that the collation of this information can be coordinated centrally rather than directly with different departments. We may need to launch this site  with a blank space here saying we have asked both governments to provide this information and set a date by which we hope to make this section live.

We may also want an interface where we can embed a couple of videos on a rotating basis, of civic groups talking about how they hope government will lead in this area.

“Our Parliaments”:

Similarly, this page provides space for both the UK and the Scottish Parliament to provide information about what they are doing to advance the Goals. In Westminster, Lord McConnell will be a useful ally in getting the necessary commitment, as convenor of the APPG on the SDGs. Again, we may need to give several months for the collation of this information.

Again, we could embed a couple of videos on a rotating basis, of civic groups talking about how they hope government will lead.

David Hope-Jones OBE, Principal Officer, Scotland Malawi Partnership

Themes
What should be the the kinds of themes the digital platform develops?

Awareness

Ownership

Engagement

Connections
In 2017, we need to move beyond all singing all dancing websites with a big fanfare launch followed by a slow decline to opening up the data and content that sits behind it. An open API is key to the success and relevance of this platform. It's not about driving traffic to this website, it's about driving content between people and communities.

Technology
 * As a Wordpress site, we can use the default WP API v2 which opens up all the data.

Who should we connect with? Could we syndicate content, and complement what others have set up?
 * We should also use a secure oauth approach to validating additions or changes to the site via API.
 * GoodHQ
 * Meetup.com
 * PB network
 * Open Government Network Scotland/UK
 * Activist media - CommonSpace etc.

Accessibility (for disabled people)
Enhancements Accessibility check
 * Widget: Browsealoud

Piloting