<s>
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
is	O
a	O
location-based	O
civic	O
engagement	O
platform	O
designed	O
to	O
consult	O
with	O
people	O
within	O
specific	O
geographic	O
boundaries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
a	O
product	O
of	O
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
Inc.	O
,	O
a	O
Canadian	O
technology	O
company	O
headquartered	O
in	O
Vancouver	O
,	O
British	O
Columbia	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
has	O
been	O
used	O
by	O
public	O
and	O
private	O
sector	O
organizations	O
to	O
consult	O
with	O
the	O
public	O
on	O
community	O
plans	O
,	O
parks	O
and	O
recreation	O
,	O
public	O
transit	O
,	O
public	O
health	O
,	O
budgets	O
,	O
and	O
more	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
late	O
,	O
it	O
has	O
supported	O
the	O
emergence	O
of	O
Smart	B-Device
Cities	I-Device
across	O
the	O
world	O
with	O
citizen	O
engagement	O
tools	O
for	O
real	O
time	O
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Urban	O
geographer	O
Colleen	O
Hardwick	O
founded	O
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
in	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
idea	O
came	O
to	O
her	O
while	O
looking	O
at	O
a	O
Google	B-Application
Map	I-Application
of	O
Vancouver	O
’s	O
Arbutus	O
Corridor	O
,	O
and	O
she	O
posed	O
a	O
question	O
about	O
how	O
to	O
best	O
consult	O
with	O
residents	O
based	O
on	O
where	O
they	O
live	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Traditional	O
forms	O
of	O
civic	O
engagement	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
public	O
meetings	O
,	O
often	O
have	O
low	O
attendance	O
with	O
very	O
selective	O
participation	O
;	O
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
initially	O
began	O
as	O
a	O
way	O
to	O
supplement	O
and	O
enhance	O
traditional	O
forms	O
of	O
consultation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
platform	O
was	O
designed	O
to	O
enable	O
open	O
and	O
transparent	O
engagement	O
by	O
connecting	O
people	O
to	O
local	O
issues	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
connecting	O
users	O
 '	O
digital	B-Application
identity	I-Application
to	O
their	O
physical	O
location	O
,	O
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
keeps	O
them	O
notified	O
of	O
new	O
and	O
relevant	O
public	O
consultations	O
in	O
their	O
communities	O
,	O
creating	O
opportunities	O
for	O
dialogue	O
between	O
citizens	O
and	O
local	O
government	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
ability	O
for	O
proponents	O
and	O
participants	O
to	O
engage	O
with	O
each	O
other	O
reflects	O
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
’s	O
two-sided	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Proponents	O
register	O
their	O
organization	O
with	O
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
and	O
set	O
up	O
a	O
topic	O
to	O
consult	O
with	O
the	O
public	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
is	O
a	O
cloud-based	O
public	O
participation	O
platform	O
that	O
generates	O
geo-spatial	O
feedback	O
data	O
,	O
closely	O
related	O
to	O
a	O
form	O
of	O
Volunteered	O
Geographic	O
Information	O
(	O
VGI	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
is	O
based	O
on	O
a	O
web	O
application	O
framework	O
which	O
enables	O
GIS	B-Application
scaling	O
and	O
has	O
a	O
built	O
in	O
archiving	O
structure	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
has	O
an	O
Application	B-Application
Programming	I-Application
Interface	I-Application
that	O
enables	O
integration	O
with	O
third	O
party	O
applications	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Facebook	B-Application
and	O
Twitter	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
was	O
developed	O
with	O
the	O
support	O
of	O
the	O
National	O
Research	O
Council	O
of	O
Canada	O
(	O
NRC-IRAP	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2015	O
,	O
PlaceSpeak	B-Application
launched	O
,	O
a	O
private	O
civic	O
network	O
that	O
allows	O
users	O
to	O
connect	O
with	O
people	O
who	O
live	O
in	O
their	O
neighbourhood	O
.	O
</s>
