The problem

A city generates, every day, thousands of observations that could become civic action: a broken traffic light, a construction without permit, an abandoned park, a recent contamination, a transport failure. The greater part of those observations is lost. Some circulate in social networks without traceability and without consequences. Few reach the institution capable of responding.

The existing platforms that collect these observations generally operate under the logic of the attention economy. They compete with social networks for users' time. Their success is measured in interactions rather than in responses. The predictable consequence is the degradation of voice, of content and of public trust over time.

The proposal

Alerta proposes a distinct architecture. Four principles sustain it:

• Anti-thesis. The platform forgoes competition for attention. Its success is measured by the civic action that occurs outside the platform.
• Reciprocity. Every interaction returns more than it takes. No part of the system consumes value without generating it.
• Operational truth. Every published observation is traceable to a responsible person or to a documented verification process.
• Shared governance. Constitutional decisions require the agreement of three chambers: Vigías, Expertos and Aliados.

These principles are developed in the Constitution of Alerta, a document of fourteen articles that fixes the institutional body of the platform.

The surfaces

Alerta operates through four distinct interfaces, each directed at a specific role:

• vigia.alerta.earth. The field operational interface. Here Vigías document observations, complete their training, manage their trajectory and consult their accumulated trust.
• admin.alerta.earth. The institutional dashboard of the team. Here the moderation of the public queue takes place, the master review of entities, the management of the Public Agenda and the editorial operation.
• aliados.alerta.earth. The portal for partner businesses and institutions. Here Aliados accept seeds, manage their redemptions and consult their activity overview.
• docs.alerta.earth. This documentation.

How to continue reading

The recommended path for the first reading is the following:

1. The founding principles, which precede the Constitution and justify it.
2. The Constitution, the complete institutional body.
3. The roles that compose the ecosystem.
4. The seed economy, which organizes material reciprocity.
5. The Saphi Intelligence constellation, which assists the operation.