One of the central themes underpinning sustainable development is equality and fairness. This is reflected in the concept of 'empowered citizenship'- in that we can all make a contribution to making our community (our local area, our region, our country, our planet) a better place now and in the future. Some important areas are quite difficult to understand. Science, economics, politics are often quite difficult to comprehend and yet are central to decisions that are made by others about our lives.

To what extent do you think that it is your duty as a citizen to be 'informed'? Are you informed? How do you get to be informed about serious issues? To what extent do you think that you should leave the complicated decisions up to others?

By definition, a 'citizen is an individual with certain rights and duties under a government and who, by birth or by choice, owes allegiance to that government.' Citizenship involves many duties and responsibilities, the basic is to contribute to the common good.

According to wilkipedia citizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, or national community.
Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities. "Active citizenship" is the philosophy that citizens should work towards the betterment of their community through economic participation, public service, volunteer work, and other such efforts to improve life for all citizens.

In a more understable language, our responsibilities are governed and enforced upon us through our goverments. These legally enforced responsibilities or duties of citizenship vary depending on one's country. Examples include:

• paying taxes


• serving on a jury


• Voting


• serving in the country's armed forces when called upon


• obeying the criminal laws enacted by one's government, even while abroad

American citizens have First Amendment freedoms:•

• Religion—Government may not establish an official religion, nor endorse, or unduly interfere with the free exercise of religion.


• Speech—Individuals are free to express their opinions and beliefs.
  
• Press—The press has the right to gather and publish information, including that which criticizes the government.


• Assembly—Individuals may peacefully gather


• Petition—Individuals have the right to make their views known to public officials.
  
  http://civics.pwnet.org/CE/CE.4.html
  

Whereas in China, The Nationality Law of the People's Republic of China regulates how Chinese lead their lives.

I would therefore argue, that if we are dutifully bound to follow laws and regulations imposed by our country of residence, then in return we are at least owed the power of knowledge, learning and understanding. We as citizens have a right to be informed, and informed the truth.

To be informed means to communicate knowledge and there are many ways to inform people and for people to be informed. Here are just some examples:

• books


• magazines


• visual advertisements - e.g. posters, billboards


• media advertisement -e.g. radio broadcasts, TV programmes/documentaries


• through music and songs


• leaflets/handouts


• newspapers


• the internet


• through the spoken word - simply talking to one another

I would say that the internet has become one of the most popular sources for information - you have the whole world at your finger tips. However, it can be dangerous and often the information is not factual, you have to be very careful to find the source and appreciate that you can not believe everything you read.

As an individual it is the source of the information which is relevant and important to me, nearly as much as the information itself. The source must be reliable for me to act responsible to it. A poor/negative source can greatly infuence the outcome of the information. It is how this information is provided and commuicated which is also of importance.

Looking at a wider scale it is positive to see progress in informing citizens by local councils. In a document pubished by http://www.communities.gov/ (April 2006) councils are to develop new ways to keep their citizens better informed. It states:
'Everyone has the right to request information held by public sector organisations under the Freedom of Information Act 2000'

It is believed that improvements in public services and effective citizen empowermet rest on transparency of information. In the current climate we are turning to advanced technology to inform us and teach us. For example, companies such as Digital Engagement believe in empowering citizens & Government through Digital Innovation. It claims “Government has been actively exploring the key issues around the use of digital technologies in the public sector and determining how it can engage more effectively with citizens to increase social inclusion and efficiency whilst delivering better public services.” http://www.publictechnology.net/

In relation to my own life experiences, I believe I am very much an independent person when requiring information, in the sense that I shall often go actively in search of the information as in general it is not provided to an adequate level for my demand. It is very much dependant on the type and source from which such information is being requested. For example, if I merely wanted a bus timetable then I can just look at my local bus stop or if I required the telephone number for a pizza delivery service then I could turn to my local yellow pages - all of which the local government provide. However, when it comes to more serious issues or I require a greater depth of knowledge on more complicated topics, I feel as if I have to search a lot harder for the information I so wish for and then I also have to question the extent to which the information I have found provides me with a fair answer, or is it derived by somebody's opinion and not factual. For example, one topic I believe I have little knowledge on, due to the lack of appropriate information, is politics. I find it confusing what I read in the media or what I watch on the television (like in the Houses of Parliment). I tend to forget about politics because of my lack of understanding, however I would very much like a non-bias account about what is going on in the world of politics and why.

In addition, I also believe that some people are more informed than others, and this to me is unfair. It is not neccessarily those of a more previledged background (e.g. they can afford the internet or have 6 televisions and one in their own room!) I believe under the power of the present government some groups of people benefit more than others. For example, those of a working class background are more informed about the benefits that they can recieve, than someone of an upper-class knows what number to ring when they need specialist advice about a health condition. Please note this is only my opinion and I do not wish to offend anybody nor do I mean to be subjective to different classes of people, this is merely an example to try and explain my beliefs.
The information that one is presented with is very much governed and controlled by 'people in high places'. In terms of serious issues, I feel as if we are almost too sheltered from the reality due to the lack of information that we are provided with. Is this the intention? If we are taught little, then perhaps we as a nation will question less the success (or generally the unsuccess) of our leaders (by this I am referring to our government bodies and the 'people in high places').

I therefore would argue that we should not always leave the complicated serious decisions in life up to others because who is to say that they know best? In some circumstances it would be more appropriate to, e.g. a doctor would usually be best to diagnose treatment when presented with a certain health condition (invariable anyway) as they have obtained plenty of information to give them expertise with the situation. However, one must make their own judgement as to whether or not to leave questions and problems for others to find the answers to. I would just recommend that you should be aware of 'spin' on situations and never completely trust the outcome or believe everything you are presented with.