organisation
The Accountability Lab makes governance work for people by supporting active citizens, responsible leaders and accountable institutions. Their goal is a world in which resources are used wisely, decisions benefit everyone fairly, and people lead secure lives.
The Accountability Lab was founded in 2012 as an effort to work with young people to develop new ideas for accountability, transparency and open government. It has since evolved into a global network of local Accountability Labs that are finding new ways to shift societal norms, solve intractable challenges, and build “unlikely networks” for change.
Accountability Lab has three areas of work: value-shifting campaigns; training and collaborative spaces; and ecosystem building.
First, their value-shifting campaigns aim to change mindsets and support accountability champions through popular, positive campaigns inside and outside governments. Examples include their Integrity Icon, music competitions and SDG16 Innovation Challenges. These campaigns shift discussions around accountability from negative conversations to constructive actions.
Second, Accountability Lab’s training and spaces aim to equip reformers for collective action – both inside and outside government – and to connect responsible leaders in the countries where they work. They do this through their Accountability Incubators, Integrity Innovation Labs and other global training programs.
Third, in their ecosystem building, Accountability Lab promotes collaboration around accountability and open governance to build greater capacity for joint action and a collective identity for accountability agents of change. As part of this, they support: community feedback loops (through Civic Action Teams); developing thematic co-working spaces (including OpenGov Hubs in Nepal, Mali and Pakistan; and an affiliate hub, called iCampus, in Liberia); and sharing learning among organisations and individuals within their networks.
