I'm talking about your typical Eastern Europe village, like 5000 people small, where almost everybody has internet access and a car.
I have an opportunity to help the local government, at least remotely. And they are open to any ideas(let's just assume the budget is really small).
What value can I bring that would positively influence such a small community?
Move there, for two reasons.<p>First, it's the way you're <i>really</i> find out what they need - by being there, being immersed in the life of the village, meeting and talking to the people who actually live there, and finding out what in their lives you could do something to help.<p>And second, if you live there, you'll do most of your buying there, supporting local businesses. That helps the town, too.
The GIS community has a bunch of stuff for local govt. Just google "GIS small town". Maps/Dashboards (of issues) to track things basically - road repairs, streetlighting, sewage/water monitoring, zoning/taxes, utilities etc etc.<p>This maybe too advanced but will give you ideas (go through the other case studies) - <a href="http://www.vassarlabs.com/smart-cities-section.html#scogp" rel="nofollow">http://www.vassarlabs.com/smart-cities-section.html#scogp</a>
An online polling system for govt.<p>Online portal facilitating barter system and resources.<p>Enable small businesses that serve locally and to trade with neighbors.<p>But you first have to figure out what their challenges are...you can either move there to evaluate or use a trusted party to convey without bias, the pain points.<p>Education..for youth and adults..is always good..regardless of location..
Dunno how feasible it would be to do remotely, but your best bet would be to spend few days with magistrate clerks, watch what they do and automate repetitive procedures. For instance they often know only absolute basics of Excel, so even simple things can help them immensely.