I just got back from a remarkable speech from Prof. Lawrence Lessig, sponsored by the Sunlight Foundation, on the launch of his new organization and effort called Change Congress.

Lessig is taking on the issue of corruption of Congress and makes a compelling case that trust in our institutions and the perception of corruption argue for change, and that this is the "first change" even if it's not the most important.  He's focused on public financing, earmarks, contributions from PACs and lobbyists, and transparency.

Change Congress will include a pledge campaign that involves both candidate and citizen commitments to reform as well as campaign donations to candidates who take the vow. And it will feature an interactive wiki effort to track certain corruption metrics by congressional district.  The long term plan isn't completely fleshed out--at least not publicly--but the idea and the initial strategy are promising.  And Lessig has a great deal of credibility from his work on the Creative Commons.

One thing I'm particularly interested in is how Change Congress will allow interaction between supporters and whether it will facilitate actions beyond the online space.  In other words, as people join the effort online, will they be able to connect to each other and find additional ways to push for a reform-minded congressional district, both through online and offline activity?  What about collaborating on state and local reforms? I asked Joe Trippi -- Lessig's partner in the launch -- about his ideas on this and he said they're focused on the launch for now but it's something they want to think more about. We shall see.

This kind of innovation and angle on the problems we face in Congress is exciting and necessary.  Keep an eye on it, and as a citizen you can take their pledge.