CivicActions

CivicActions, Inc. is a technology services firm founded in 2004 as a limited liability company. The company focuses on applying free and open-source software and modern digital-service practices to the needs of public agencies, nonprofit organizations, and other mission-driven institutions. Its work combines consulting, software development, website modernization, user-experience design, infrastructure operations, security and compliance, quality assurance, data services, and ongoing technical support. The company emerged during the early growth of open-source web and civic-technology ecosystems. Its early work centered on hosted free and open-source group-forming and community-network technologies for nongovernmental organizations. CivicActions adopted and supported platforms including Drupal, Openwall Linux, and CiviCRM, and became a service provider around Drupal and related civic-sector tools. The company’s work has consequently been associated with organizations seeking greater control over their technology, transparent software practices, and alternatives to proprietary platforms. Between 2004 and 2012, CivicActions stated that it had served more than 175 organizations. The organizations identified in accounts of its history include the Center for Reproductive Rights, American Public Media, Amnesty International, and the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science. These engagements helped establish the firm’s profile in nonprofit technology and open-source implementation. CivicActions later expanded its public-sector focus. In 2014, company personnel worked with people in federal, state, and local government to establish Agile Government Leadership, commonly known as AGL. The initiative produced the Agile Government Handbook and made its work available under a public license so that government employees and other software vendors could reuse it. This effort reflected CivicActions’ interest in adapting agile delivery, iterative procurement, and user-centered development practices to government environments. The firm has worked with a range of U.S. government bodies and public institutions. Reported projects include GlobalNet, a collaboration and social-media platform developed with the Defense Security Cooperation Agency in 2016; the Digital Democracy platform created with California Polytechnic State University in 2017; and LINCS, an adult-literacy website developed and maintained for the U.S. Department of Education. CivicActions has also worked with the San Francisco Human Services Agency on EatFresh. Through its relationship with Acquia, it has been associated with work for the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Other reported assignments include website modernization for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Federal Communications Commission. CivicActions has also participated in the broader free-software movement. Gregory Heller and Henry Poole, both connected with the Free Software Foundation and CivicActions, played important roles in the creation of Defective by Design, an anti-digital-rights-management campaign. The company was also a founding member of the Digital Services Coalition, an organization intended to connect firms and practitioners working on modern digital delivery for government. In early 2016, co-founder Aaron Pava joined the United States Digital Service in Washington, D.C., where he worked on efforts to improve federal procurement and make it easier for agencies to obtain services from small businesses such as CivicActions. Pava returned to CivicActions in November 2016. Publicly available reference material does not establish a current executive roster, ownership structure, headquarters, revenue, or a current official website, so those fields remain unspecified here.

CivicActions was established in 2004 as a limited liability company serving nongovernmental organizations through hosted free and open-source software. Its initial focus was on group-forming and community-network technologies. During its early development, the firm adopted platforms such as Drupal, Openwall Linux, and CiviCRM. It subsequently became a service provider for Drupal and other open-source systems used by civic, nonprofit, and public-interest organizations. The company reported serving more than 175 organizations between 2004 and 2012. Its identified clients and partners during this period included the Center for Reproductive Rights, American Public Media, Amnesty International, and the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science. These engagements placed CivicActions within the nonprofit technology sector and demonstrated its emphasis on open platforms rather than exclusively proprietary software. In 2014, CivicActions personnel joined with participants from federal, state, and local government to found Agile Government Leadership, or AGL. The initiative published the Agile Government Handbook and released its work under a public license. AGL’s model was intended to allow public employees and other digital-service vendors to reuse its guidance and apply agile methods to government technology delivery and procurement. CivicActions’ work later included a growing number of public-sector projects. In 2016, it worked with the Defense Security Cooperation Agency on GlobalNet, a collaboration and social-media platform. In 2017, it worked with California Polytechnic State University on Digital Democracy. The company also developed and maintained LINCS, an adult-literacy website for the U.S. Department of Education, and worked with the San Francisco Human Services Agency on EatFresh. Through Acquia, CivicActions was associated with projects for the U.S. Department of Justice and Department of the Treasury. Its reported website-modernization work also included the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Federal Communications Commission. The company’s history overlaps with the free-software advocacy community. Gregory Heller and Henry Poole, who were involved with both CivicActions and the Free Software Foundation, played major roles in the formation of Defective by Design, an anti-digital-rights-management campaign. CivicActions also became a founding member of the Digital Services Coalition, linking it to a broader network of firms supporting modern digital delivery in government. A notable personnel development occurred in early 2016, when co-founder Aaron Pava joined the United States Digital Service in Washington, D.C. His work involved federal procurement practices and efforts to improve agencies’ ability to acquire services from small businesses. Pava returned to CivicActions in November 2016. Available reference material describes the company’s services and selected projects but does not provide reliable current information about its headquarters, ownership, revenue, present leadership structure, or official web domain.

• 2017

  Digital Democracy project

  [1]CivicActionsen.wikipedia.org

  The company worked with California Polytechnic State University on the Digital Democracy platform.

• 2016

  Aaron Pava joins the United States Digital Service

  [1]CivicActionsen.wikipedia.org

  Co-founder Aaron Pava joined the United States Digital Service to work on federal procurement modernization and returned to CivicActions in November.

• 2016

  GlobalNet project

  [1]CivicActionsen.wikipedia.org

  CivicActions worked with the Defense Security Cooperation Agency on GlobalNet, a collaboration and social-media platform.

• 2014

  Agile Government Leadership is founded

  [1]CivicActionsen.wikipedia.org

  CivicActions personnel helped establish Agile Government Leadership with participants from federal, state, and local government.

• 2012

  Early nonprofit service period

  [1]CivicActionsen.wikipedia.org

  The company reported having served more than 175 organizations during the period from its founding through 2012.

• 2004

  CivicActions is founded

  [1]CivicActionsen.wikipedia.org

  CivicActions is established as a limited liability company focused on hosted free and open-source technologies for nongovernmental organizations.

An open-source-focused digital services partner for government agencies, nonprofits, and other mission-driven organizations. CivicActions positions its work around public-interest technology, agile delivery, transparent software practices, accessibility, and the use of open platforms.

• Open-source content management and digital-platform services

  Drupal services

  CivicActions adopted Drupal early and became a Drupal service provider. Its Drupal-related work includes implementation, customization, website modernization, support, quality assurance, and operational services for public-interest and government organizations.

• Government collaboration platform · 2016

  GlobalNet

  GlobalNet is a collaboration and social-media platform developed by CivicActions with the Defense Security Cooperation Agency. The available reference material identifies the project and its 2016 timing but does not provide detailed technical or operational specifications.

• Civic participation platform · 2017

  Digital Democracy

  Digital Democracy was developed with California Polytechnic State University. The platform is identified as a CivicActions project associated with 2017, although the available source material does not describe its complete feature set or current status.

• Adult-literacy website

  LINCS

  CivicActions created and maintained LINCS, an adult-literacy website for the U.S. Department of Education. The available material identifies the client relationship and service role but does not provide a detailed account of the platform’s current operation.

• Public-health and social-services website

  EatFresh

  EatFresh is a project associated with CivicActions and the San Francisco Human Services Agency. The supplied reference describes CivicActions’ role in its creation but does not specify the full product scope or present status.

• 2014Agile Government Leadership

  United States

  CivicActions personnel helped found Agile Government Leadership with government participants. The initiative promoted agile methods for public-sector technology delivery and published an openly licensed handbook.

  Outcome. The handbook and related work were made available for reuse by government workers and other software vendors.

  Source
• Defective by Design

  International

  CivicActions-associated figures Gregory Heller and Henry Poole played major roles in forming Defective by Design, a Free Software Foundation-related campaign opposing digital rights management and other digital restrictions on users.

  Outcome. The campaign became a recognized anti-DRM advocacy effort. The supplied material does not establish a specific endpoint or measurable outcome.

  Source

• 2016

  Co-founder joins federal digital-service workStrategy

  Background

  Federal agencies faced procurement practices that could make it difficult for small technology firms to provide services.

  Action taken

  Aaron Pava joined the United States Digital Service to assist with transforming federal procurement practices.

  Aftermath

  Pava returned to CivicActions in November 2016.

  Source

• 2014

  Support for an openly licensed agile-government initiativeStrategy

  Background

  CivicActions worked with government participants to address the use of agile software practices in public-sector delivery and procurement.

  Action taken

  The participants founded Agile Government Leadership and published the Agile Government Handbook under a public license.

  Aftermath

  The material could be reused by government employees and other agile software vendors.

  Source

1. 1CivicActionsen.wikipedia.org