The team behind Coordinated Action Networks (CAN) combines decades of experience in media, technology, infrastructure development and community engagement.

Founder Michael E. Winn brings 62 years of experience producing media for education and public understanding, technology implementation, writing for local newspapers and designing systems for real-world application—including early work on intelligent buildings and leadership in affordable housing and civic programs. His work focused on personal agency and civic participation in decision-making.

CAN evolved from Winn’s direct engagement beginning in Los Angeles in 1980, involving community human development workshops, commercial building development, transportation infrastructure, community housing development and municipal planning surveys involving thousands of San Diego school children. In 2018, Winn organized OYG to launch a web-based town council application to address a gap in inclusive participation in decision-making following the demise of local newspapers.

Researching development of OYG’s online town council concept involved input from policymakers, activists and office holders in several California cities, and reviews of OYG by data scientists and international collaborators, shaping CAN’s emphasis on subsidiarity and cross-cultural communication.

The development team maintains proximity to communities across the U.S.–Mexico border and internationally, informing designs that accommodate the ability of diverse communities to define their own priorities with processes embedded in the platform.

CAN reorients media and cloud capabilities that monetize attention, for CAN’s model that coordinates democratic systems at scale. The development strategy employs a team of experienced partners; including media and event production, online education, community development, AI, fintech and cloud capabilities.

Deployment requires community onboarding, including training of local support to facilitate inclusion of diverse populations, and a system in which AI facilitates localization.

The practical experience of each team member, regional partnerships, cooperative organization, and modular technology will allow CAN to grow to meet demand across diverse communities under real conditions.