Using Community Geographic Domain Names for Community Websites Leonie Dunbar General Manager Using Community Geographic Domain Names for Community Websites

Who are.au Community Domains (auCD)? Not-for-profit organisation established by the Australian Domain Name Administrator (auDA) To facilitate the development of Community Geographic Domain Names (CGDNs)

About CGDNs There are now geographical community website addresses available for licensing – one for every suburb and town in Australia (except capital cities) They are easy to remember locality based website addresses by combining your town/suburb name with your state/territory and country code, for example:

Who is eligible to license a CGDN? Legally registered not for profit organisation or a special committee of local council that broadly represent their community Individuals, commercial entities and government bodies are not eligible No restriction on the number of domain names – provided meet eligibility criteria for each

What can the CGDN license be used for? Solely for the purpose of operating a community website developed for the benefit of the entire local community and content and functionality of the website should include but not be limited to: -Community events -Community directory -Business Directory -General information about the community -Local news -Community feedback facility You can issue virtual addressing, ie. issue personal/organisational/club community geographic addresses such as:

Benefits of CGDN Community Websites Easiest way for your community to be found on the internet through the website address itself CGDNs provide communities opportunity to “pull together” a variety of resources to a single unique location on-line Allows businesses and community organisations who can’t afford their own website a web presence

Benefits of CGDN Community Websites Provides a “community of communities” that can share experiences/resources and the ability to communicate with each other Utilise this communication tool to springboard initiatives and engage the community

Outcomes/Initiatives Emergency Communication & Information During the Fire disasters ensured community members were kept well informedwww.mirboonorth.vic.au Outcomes: They experienced 7 times their normal web traffic during the weekend of these fires and the local council acknowledged their efforts and provided additional information to include on the site.

Outcomes/Initiatives Driving for a Community Bank and are some of the communities who have used their websites to drive the process and seek pledges of support for establishing their own Bendigo Community Bank Branch. Outcomes: The Buderim Community Website Group say the response has been nothing short of awesome with a huge pledge rate being strongly endorsed by local community leaders.

Outcomes/Initiatives Car Pooling The Kyogle community created a car pooling initiative to overcome the costs/resources of separate people driving to Sydney. Outcomes: In addition to helping the local community, there is a $5.00 joining fee for the car pooling initiative to help with sustaining the cost of running the Kyogle community website. Has inspired other community groups to provide this resource on their websites.

The Gheerulla community website helped a Darwin man find the missing link in his family tree. By viewing the comprehensive cemetery section of the website a Darwin man was able to trace his family back to early settlement in the Kenilworth, Queensland district.

Other Outcomes/Initiatives Reuniting long lost friends Council involvement Helping people relocate Rosters for community groups Town awareness Sports Results Providing an employment section Promoting local economy Youth involvement/engagement Giving communities a voice to influence Tourism Conservation

Kenilworth in Queensland already had an existing community website, the group that successfully applied for their CGDN reasoned that “the existing community website could only benefit from the associated publicity, networking and geographically identifiable nature of a CGDN” - Dennis James, Webmaster for the Kenilworth Community Website

"the benefits for the community, its local groups and businesses have been tremendous. The website affords a very high search engine resulting in local businesses being found very quickly, the calendar of events allows community groups to better organise their events as they can see what else is happening throughout the year and the residents and visitors to the area have a one-stop shop for everything they need to know about Hunters Hill." - Deb Anschau on behalf of Discover Hunters Hill

Hunters Hill – relaunched re-vamped website Before upgrade of website average weekly visits 3,171 Since upgraded - average weekly visits 6,944 Significant web traffic as dwelling houses in Hunters Hill is only 4, organisations took up the available advertising for 6 months

Gippsland was under threat of massive fires late 2006/early the community resolved to develop a community fire plan from their local community website “…further demonstrating that the site is a valuable community resource, and a trusted local voice.” – Helen Guy representative of the Koonwarra Sustainable Communities Centre

Korumburra’s community website is the first CGDN to be fully developed by the local Year 9 students and was part of the school curriculum. “The philosophy of the local website is to be as inclusive as possible and to offer either free or very cheap access to a website for those who want to have a web presence.” Jennifer Young, Korumburra Community Development and Action Inc.

The Employment section of the Mansfield website is the most popular on their website. A major issue in Mansfield is attracting doctors and other health professionals The website group (Mansfield Adult Continuing Education) were recommended to include an employment section as often partners of health professionals need employment as well. Mansfield doesn’t have a permanent Job Network provider so the community website helps to advertise jobs for the locals.

CGDN Website Surveys Most popular pages are those that change regularly – eg. Events, News, Directories Kenilworth in Qld’s most popular is e-cards Mansfield’s most popular is the employment section Most groups have experienced continuous increase in website hits Some have been able to employ Web Administrators

ROLE OF auCD To assess CGDN applications for compliance with the policy rules and guidelines To provide support services to help local communities register their CGDN and create and maintain their community website

Support Services provided at no cost include: A forum for communities to share their experiences and develop best practice Promotion of their community website and any ongoing initiatives via the media, auCD website and e-newsletters to the community of auCD subscribers On-line “How to Kit” Free licensing of Community Site in a Box until 30/6/10

On-line “How to Kit” includes: Forming a Community Website Group Forming a not-for-profit organisation Sourcing Funding Website development Community consultation Launch and Marketing Sustainability

Website development Be aware of things to consider when developing your own – eg. the time it takes to develop it, who can access and add content, etc. Refer to resources on auCD website – eg: - Picture Australia – ourtown - Discount IT for not for profits - Tourism Australia resources - Forum to share experiences ask questions

“Community Site in a Box” Free until 30 th June, 2010 Create your own styles Functions such as news, events, contact us, search, directories and site map – note unlimited content size Ability to issue unlimited individual geographic local addresses to your community via the website Statistics on web use and allowance for sponsor ads Create users with different levels of roles: author, administrator, editor or create your own custom roles where users can have access to any section, page, listing, etc

Community Site in a Box Hosting and unlimited size of website Help/support Adapts format when detects mobile devices RSS Widgets (content syndication)

CSS (Cascading Style Sheet) This is a programming language used to describe how a document written in a mark- up language appears on the screen. Here it allows people with CSS skills to add/amend website appearance.

COMMUNITY SITE IN A BOX “It is helpful that one does not have to have an in-depth knowledge of html or extensive web software. CSIAB has brought web development to the general community…Well done!” - Colin Kemp, Bowraville Community Technology Centre,

COMMUNITY SITE IN A BOX Fiona Murdoch of the Nangiloc/Colignan & District Community Association: “Thank you for the fantastic website in a box. My friend and I are working on the site and it is easier than I ever thought. I am so impressed and excited by all your work”.

COMMUNITY SITE IN A BOX “From my point of view, the product is easy to use, quite intuitive and lets me get on with the job of reaching out to our community members. We’d be lost without it.” John Gwyther from the Lake Glenmaggie Community

Using Community Geographic Domain Names for Community Websites Leonie Dunbar General Manager.au Community Domains