Next30Days, a new civic engagement app founded by Julien Clayton, aims to enhance participation in local government meetings in cities like Seattle and Bellevue. The app addresses the challenge of navigating complex meeting agendas by summarizing information and providing actionable steps for residents to engage.
Clayton, who previously worked as a product manager at Amazon and has an MBA from Harvard, conceived the app after feeling disillusioned by national news. He realized that local government is a crucial area where individuals can make impactful changes.
The app utilizes an automated system that pulls data from the Legistar platform, which many cities across the U.S. use for legislative management. Users can select topics of interest and receive curated emails twice weekly that include meeting summaries and direct links for participation.
Next30Days encourages communal attendance at meetings by displaying how many locals have committed to attending. Clayton aims to foster a sense of community support, addressing the common fear of attending city council meetings alone.