The Gravel & Shea Blockchain team are excited to announce a new blockchain-based pilot project.
Consensus, a Toronto-based company and Gravel & Shea client, has designed a smartphone app to connect the local community to municipal government. The goal is to encourage South Burlington community members to share their thoughts on municipal issues right from their smartphones.
Kevin Dorn, South Burlington City Manager, is enthusiastic about this opportunity to connect the public with policymakers in a real and accessible way. He considers it imperative that community members become more engaged with local government, to make sure they are seen and heard as a part of a transparent and effective democratic process.
Consensus is joining forces with Champlain College to bring the app into reality and into the community. Consensus will tap Champlain College math and science students to assist in the project. Dorn made the announcement about the pilot project last week, alongside Consensus, Champlain College, the Vermont Attorney General’s office and Gravel & Shea.
Left to right: DLGA Chair John Burton; Champlain College President Don Laackman; Consensus’ Dustin Plett; Kevin Dorn, South Burlington City Manager; Chris Curtis, Attorney General’s office; David J. Thelander, Gravel & Shea.
The Consensus app marks another positive step in Gravel & Shea’s success in attracting blockchain-focused businesses to the region. The firm has been working to build partnerships to facilitate local blockchain-based initiatives in a range of industries, including real estate, since VT passed landmark blockchain legislation last spring.
Blockchain technology is highly resistant to hacking, which means that it offers an exceptional levels of security and privacy for applications which incorporate public sector data. Blockchain’s ability to simultaneously keep records confidential and streamline citizen communication makes the technology an ideal support tool for civic engagement.
Through the coming months, Gravel & Shea will work with both Consensus and South Burlington to launch the project, with the app expected to be available to local residents via the App Store this summer.
