Just as I was saying that it was recess and not a lot was happening out comes David Miliband and introduces us to the new Defra wiki. The wiki aims to use collective wisdom to build an ‘environmental contract’.
Miliband says:
“This is an experiment for me and my department. But if it works, it’s an approach I’d like us to use more.”
I think it is a great idea and I suggested something similar using the collaborative software tool Writely on eDemocracy Update previously.
Before we (and Defra) get too excited about this there are some hurdles to overcome.
Some of these have already been flagged up by users on the wiki’s home page and I must admit, despite my love of the idea of open source collaboration it looks like Defra has set up the wiki so you don’t have to register to make edits. This is a bit advantageous and open to abuse. If this happens (and who’s to say it won’t be given Wikipedia’s experience) it has the potential to bring the embryonic project crashing down.
Incidentally, if the wiki did come crashing down it would most likely end up at the bottom of the 'Trough of Disillusionment' in this year’s Gartner Hype Cycle which was released last week.
Gartner’s chart indicates that wiki use has dropped off from the heady days of ‘The Peak of Inflated Expectations’ into disillusionment.
However, bear in mind that the Cycle is very US-centric and the UK needs six months at least to catch up with its predictions.
But this leaves the Defra wiki in a very interesting position.
As the first government wiki (and possibly the first use in the UK of a wiki for such a major project) its success or failure will undoubtedly be monitored closely.
If it proves to be a great success then it may shore up the reputation and functionality of wikis for corporate/mass consultative use. Alternatively if it fails spectacularly then it may speed up the wiki’s descent into web 2.0 history.
“Remember wikis?” we’ll say in 8 months time. And laugh to ourselves!
Thanks to: Stuart Bruce for the tip off
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