“Monmouthpedia,” as the project is called, is the first Wikipedia project ever to cover a whole town, and it relies on QRpedia codes to link visitors with relevant articles on Wikipedia. Ceramic or metal plaques are emblazoned with the codes in places that are exposed to the elements and for articles specific to Monmouth; elsewhere, smaller plaques are used. Either way, visitors can use their smartphones to scan the codes and retrieve linked articles in a wide array of languages, though the project’s primary emphasis is Welsh. The project is jointly funded by Wikimedia UK and Monmouthshire County Council, which has committed to installing free citywide wifi to help enable it. The video below explains the premise in more detail:

Since the project began six months ago, Wikipedia volunteers around the globe have contributed nearly 500 new articles in over 25 languages; on its official launch earlier this month, some 1,000 QR codes were already in place throughout Monmouth, according to an announcement on the Wikimedia blog. How long before initiatives such as this become a norm around the world?

Website: www.monmouthpedia.org
Contact: john.cummings@monmouthpedia.org

Spotted by: Murtaza Patel

Aiming to become “the digital equivalent of the coins we use every day,” in the Canadian Mint’s own words, the MintChip will target micro- and nano-transactions conducted both online and offline, whether at the physical point of sale, on mobile devices, or among peers. Based on a direct asset transfer model that moves value among participants without the involvement of any intermediary such as a credit card company, the MintChip will require each user to have dedicated technology loaded in an account in the cloud, mobile device, USB stick or PC. The Mint explains: “MintChip is based on two technical propositions: the creation of secure integrated circuit chips to hold electronic value and a secure protocol that allows the transfer of value from one chip to another and ensures the integrity of the MintChip system. It operates without the need for personal identification, thereby maintaining the user’s privacy.” The video below explains the premise in more detail:

Having recently announced that it will discontinue the penny, the Royal Canadian Mint was, for a period, challenging developers to help make the MintChip a reality. It had to stop accepting registrations early, however, because of “a very high level of interest,” it says. Winners — due to be announced in September — will receive a total of roughly CAD 50,000 in gold. Public voting and a panel of judges including Google’s vice president of payments will select where the honors go. Potential privacy issues have been flagged by at least one observer, but there’s no denying this is one to watch as it unfolds.

Website: developer.mintchipchallenge.com/index.php
Contact: mintchipsupport@mint.ca

Working with outdoor advertising firm JCDecaux, the company has set up two booths featuring touchscreens close to the site where the New York art institution is planning to develop a USD 184 million Helsinki branch of its museum. According to a FastCompany report, there is a faction of Finnish taxpayers who oppose the building, and passersby can now make their voices heard by touching their hand to the Facebook-style ‘Like’ icon or a thumbs-down ‘Dislike’ button depending on their stance. Although the results of the vote will not be binding, FastCompany believes the outcome could be used to bolster the winning side’s case. Unfortunately, however, the current system has no way of stopping users from repeatedly casting a vote to skew the results.

City officials will need to decide whether to go ahead with the investment by the end of April and the voting stations have already proved to be a popular way for citizens to become engaged with an important civic issue. Could this voting system be emulated for new developments elsewhere?

Website: www.heyday.fi
Contact: oskari.heikel@heyday.fi

On 13 April, the rail service teamed up with book publisher Random House to place posters on the exterior of the central carriages of ten services traveling between Vallès Oriental and Baix Llobregat. Each poster encourages commuters to join the ‘reading train’ and once inside, interior posters provide riders with a selection of 40 book titles from which the first chapter can be downloaded via their respective QR codes. According to El Periódico, authors on the list include Spanish language writers such as Ildefonso Falcones, Jorge Luis Borges and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, as well as translated works by John Le Carré and Umberto Eco. The scheme is set to run for two months and will be repeated three times a year until 2016, with hopes to expand to include works from other publishing houses.

As well as seeking to improve the literacy of residents using the train service, the scheme also serves to publicize works of literature, while readers are also entertained during their commute. One to emulate in your part of the world?

Website: www.fgc.net
Contact: rrpp@fgc.cat

Spotted by: Joandó Reverter

Four wards in the district – Adams Morgan, Brookland, Fairlawn and Tenleytown – will be the sites for the piloting of the scheme, which will see new trees planted on the state’s streets tagged with a QR code. Passersby who scan the images with a smartphone will be automatically directed towards a form on the Department of Transportation website to register their interest in caring for the tree. Adoption involves applying ten gallons of water to the tree each week between the beginning of spring to the start of winter, clearing away weeds or litter and alerting the department to any larger maintenance requirements. Canopy Keeper registrants receive a slow-drip watering tub free of charge to help them carry out their task. According to the scheme’s organizers, although the department has its own tree maintenance staff, it relies on the help of citizens to keep the trees thriving.

The Canopy Keepers’ QR code scheme makes it easier for the residents and businesses of DC to help out in their local community. One to replicate elsewhere?

Website: www.ddot.dc.gov
Contact: john.lisle@dc.gov

Spotted by: Parul Rohatgi

Having started in March this year, the market will run every Sunday until the end of the year from Chapultepec Park in the country’s capital. Residents can visit the location with glass (clear, amber, green and blue), paper/cardboard, aluminum beverage cans, PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles and tetrapak cartons, handing them over in return for ‘green points’ that can be used to purchase local farmers’ goods at the market. Market customers can exchange up to ten kilograms of waste and must separate and clean their rubbish. Organized by the Secretaría del Medio Ambiente (Ministry of Environment), the scheme aims to demonstrate how waste products can retain their value beyond initial use; the goods on sale are purchased with money received from the waste management companies receiving the recyclable goods.

The initiative benefits both farmers and waste management companies involved in the exchange, as well as residents who get to swap their rubbish for food, while simultaneously raising awareness of the importance of recycling. One to replicate in your part of the world?

Website: www.sma.df.gob.mx
Contact: www.sma.df.gob.mx/sma/index.php?opcion=7

The City asked residents to submit their ideas for a new bike design through the official City of Bordeaux je participe micro-site, with more than 300 respondents taking part. Designer Philippe Starck was then brought in to translate the numerous suggestions into a single concept. The final design, unveiled at the second Cyclab event in Bordeaux in February, is a silver and yellow bike-scooter, with a foot panel placed in front of the pedals to enable users to safely push start the machine. Peugeot has now been contracted to put the bikes into production before they become part of a city-wide rental scheme.

The aim of the project was to give citizens an input into a service they will be using themselves, with the final bike reflecting their concerns over ease-of-use and safety. Government departments elsewhere: could crowdsourcing ideas from local residents improve your services?

Website: www.starck.com
Contact: www.bordeaux.fr/contact

The initiative has been appointed by the Irish government and industrial development agency IDA Ireland to help boost job creation in the country in the wake of the financial crisis. ConnectIreland is relying on individuals to seek out their business contacts that are currently looking to expand in Europe. After registering on the site and handing over details of a potential contact, ConnectIreland considers the suitability of launching that contact’s business in Ireland. If successful, the user acts as a ‘Connector’ and is required to set up an appointment with the business. If talks are successful and the contact agrees to expand in Ireland, Connectors are viable to receive a reward of EUR 1,500 per job created by that enterprise. The cash is available for up to 100 new positions – a maximum of EUR 150,000, of which 50 percent is paid one year on from the job creations and the remainder two years on. The video below features Martin Sheen, Michael Flatly and Saiorse Ronan discussing the concept:

ConnectIreland aims to find global economic solutions through crowdsourcing. If it proves successful in diffusing a nation’s economic woes, how else could governments tap the crowds for the benefit of everyone involved?

Website: www.connectireland.com
Contact: www.connectireland.com/en/contact_us.aspx

Launched at the end of last month, some 200 displays have been placed on the side of specially-designed “communication pods” within the Square Mile. The company was offered a 21-year tender by the City of London to reduce the number of free newspapers being left in the streets, and as well as offering a recycling solution, the screens have provided a digital alternative — showing content covering a range of areas, including news, sports, arts, fashion and travel updates. The devices are bomb-proof, while the low-energy screens automatically alter their brightness in reaction to the light levels of the environment. Analysis by Renew suggests that each screen already reaches between 10,000 and 30,000 people each day, and the collective audience is set to grow to 3 million by the time of the 2012 London Olympics.

This solution provides Londoners with genuinely useful information, while serving the city’s recycling needs. On top of that, Renew hope to reap the benefits from the advertising they serve via the bins. Inspiration for urban entrepreneurs hoping to make a change in their own city!

Website: renewsolution.com
Contact: rhepburn@waughton.com

Spotted by: Florent Lesauvage

The “Christmas cards on wheels” concept is based on the designs of Swedish artist Jenny Nyström, who is thought to have illustrated the first Swedish Christmas cards in the late nineteenth century. A barn in Nyström’s home town of Smaland has been converted to recreate scenes from her most popular designs — a festive living room, pigs and a grand piano; and a hot air balloon with tiny Father Christmases. A camera travels on a track around the room for 12 hours a day, streaming live to the website. Visitors can view this stream, choose when to capture a still from the footage for their card, and then write a personalized greeting to accompany it. The card is then delivered by Posten for SEK 15. The video below explains the concept in more detail:

Fully customizable items are becoming standard fare, and Posten have found a creative way of turning customization seasonal. Inspiration here to give your customers the choice of personalized products, any time of year!

Website: www.julkortifarten.se/eng
Contact: press@posten.se

Spotted by: Raymond Neo

As reported by PHYSORG.COM, in order for a letter to be delivered with a “Space City 1” postmark, an email version is sent to a computer on the Tiangong-1 spacecraft currently orbiting Earth. The email is re-routed to the China Space Post Office located in Beijing to be printed and inserted into a space-themed envelope. Envelopes are marked with the special space stamp before being sent on in the mail. According to smartplanet, the China Space Post Office also sells a range of stamps, postcards and envelopes commemorating previous Chinese space missions, and is said to be headed by China’s first astronaut, Yang Liwei.

As more people choose to communicate online, so post offices around the world are searching for innovations to keep physical mail an attractive option. One of many ideas that can help to get consumers offline and into the real world!

Website: www.chinapost.com.cn
Contact: webmaster@chinapost.com.cn

Spotted by: Raymond Neo