The Accountability Lab was founded in early 2012 as an effort to work with young people to develop new ideas for accountability, transparency and open government. It has 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. Externally, this means convening and supporting others within the accountability space to push towards collective goals. Internally, this means actively coaching, mentoring and developing the next generation of accountability thinkers and practitioners. Our vision: a world in which resources are used wisely, decisions benefit everyone fairly, and people lead secure lives. Our mission is to make governance work for people through supporting active citizens, responsible leaders and accountable institutions.
Paradigmatic
They aim to ‘shift societal norms, solve intractable challenges and build “unlikely networks” for change’.
Their vision is ‘a world in which citizens are active, leaders are responsible and institutions are accountable. It is a world in which resources are used wisely, decisions benefit everyone fairly, and people lead secure lives.‘
Integrated
They recognise need for some inner change/change from within/cultural change in their articulation of their core organisational value of ‘humility’: “We understand that building trust, changing mindsets, and setting up systems of accountability ultimately must be done from within, and can take years to show their full impact.”
Pragmatic
‘Practicality’ is one of their core values:
“Practicality:
- We emphasize the creation of useful tools that are sustainable and scalable over time.
- We are cost-effective and use resources efficiently in all our operations, and encourage our accountapreneurs to do the same with our small grants.”
Additional Notes
Their global base is in the USA but they have network labs in multiple countries, each with their own Country Director: Liberia, Mali, Pakistan, Nepal, Mexico, Niger, South Africa, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe