Community Engagement and Civic Collaboration

Adel Ebeid is being honored as a Champion of Change for his efforts in local innovation. 

Philadelphia is honored to participate in the Champions of Change ceremony at the White House and highlight our efforts at re-casting the role of government through community engagement and civic collaboration. Our city has worked hard to develop impactful partnerships with community-based organizations, institutions of higher education, and residents in order to positively influence social outcomes in under-resourced neighborhoods. Two Philadelphia programs, KEYSPOT and Philly Rising, employ this civic collaboration model for planning and implementation and serve as working models for innovative government.

KEYSPOT is a neighborhood-based, public technology collaborative responsible for an integrated network of 77 technology-enabled community centers formed to close significant gaps in technology access and adoption that are particularly persistent in low-income neighborhoods. Similarly, the Philly Rising program relies on a collaborative, community-based approach to empower residents to tackle crime and quality of life issues and coordinate city services to better meet those challenges. KEYSPOT and Philly Rising both leverage Philadelphia’s tremendous community assets to link and further develop physical, human, and community infrastructures in order to provide residents with tools and support so that they may realize their vision for family and community. 

We will continue to build on the success of these innovative initiatives and look forward to what’s next.

Adel Ebeid is Philadelphia, Pennsylvania's first Chief Innovation Officer