Posts By Craig Thomler

VicHealth Seed Challenge and the history and potential for government challenges

VicHealth has just announced the start of the VicHealth Seed Challenge, where the agency is asking people from across the nutrition sector, fruit and vegetable industries, researchers, social innovators/entrepreneurs and the digital world to collaborate and seek solutions to the wicked problem: “How do we improve fruit and vegetable supply and access, as well asRead… Read more »

Presentations from Social Media conference and #socadl

Earlier this week I gave presentations at Canberra and Adelaide social media conferences from Akolade and at #Socadl – the regular meetup for South Australian social media enthusiasts. I’ve included my two presentations below, and they’re also available in my Slideshare page. Privacy and social media for Australian governments from Craig Thomler Government 2.0 –Read… Read more »

What competing Australian broadband policies really tell us about how Australian politics and government are changing

Yesterday the Liberal-National Coalition released its broadband policy for Australia, in front of a high-tech set at Sky News, in contrast to the Labor Government’s NBN plan and current rollout. I’m not going to go into the politics of this announcement, nor the potential economic and social impacts of the differences between the policies inRead… Read more »

Web and social media reporting can help Communication get a seat at the decision-makers’ table

Yesterday morning I attended the first OPC IT WebEx event for the year, where we heard from three great speakers on intranet development, accessibility and the changing face of the media in Australia. One particular statement that stuck in my mind was from David Pembroke, CEO of Content Group, who said that it was importantRead… Read more »

Opening the vault – Open data in Queensland – watch the livestream

Today the ‘Opening the vault’ event is being held in Brisbane, discussing open data in the context of the state. Following from the Queensland Government’s commitment to open data (with the appointment of Australia’s first e-Government Assistant Minister), the event was opened by Premier Newman and is being livestreamed on the web – demonstrating theRead… Read more »

Innovating in the public sector – The Pitch: Five presentations. Five minutes. Five big ideas.

The Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA), in partnership with the CPA Australia, has introduced a fantastic innovation competition for public servants. Named The Pitch, In an IPAA first, the 2013 IPAA National Conference is providing an opportunity to pitch ideas for an original policy initiative or public sector innovation that could make people’s livesRead… Read more »

Vote Compass – not just interesting, but useful for government and the public

Vote Compass App for Australia abc.net.au/news/elections/federal/2013/votecompass/ The ABC has launched the Vote Compass service in Australia, designed to help the public match their policy views with the official platforms of Australian political parties. Vote Compass (votecompass.ca) was developed by political scientists in Canada, where it has been used for both Canadian and US elections. AsidesRead… Read more »

Breaking news: Australian Government to appoint Government 2.0 Minister

I’ve just learnt from an inside source that the Australian Government has decided to go several steps further than the Queensland Government (who appointed an Assistant Minister for eGovernment last year), by appointing Australia’s first Government 2.0 Minister. The new Minister, who will be announced later today, will be responsible for taking forward the government’sRead… Read more »

Breaking news: Australian Government to appoint Government 2.0 Minister

I’ve just learnt from an inside source that the Australian Government has decided to go several steps further than the Queensland Government (who appointed an Assistant Minister for eGovernment last year), by appointing Australia’s first Government 2.0 Minister. The new Minister, who will be announced later today, will be responsible for taking forward the government’sRead… Read more »

Breaking news: Australian Government to appoint Government 2.0 Minister

I’ve just learnt from an inside source that the Australian Government has decided to go several steps further than the Queensland Government (who appointed an Assistant Minister for eGovernment last year), by appointing Australia’s first Government 2.0 Minister. The new Minister, who will be announced later today, will be responsible for taking forward the government’sRead… Read more »