This weekend I spoke at the We Live NY Conference, helping to organize a session on Gov 2.0. Slides can be found below. Overall, I think the presentation went really well. I enjoyed speaking on the topic and hope that I will be able to do it again soon! It was also nice to be surrounded by so many passionate people from Upstate NY.
The goal of my presentation was to help people conceptualize what Gov 2.0 means and hopefully show how Gov 2.0 is reforming the way government interfaces with citizens – at all levels of government. I also hoped that by showing a few examples, someone might get inspired to go out and develop an app or develop a new, innovative idea for government.
The hardest part of the presentation was explaining the movement. It took a lot of practice to get down the right way to describe the idea of “Government as a Platform,” and briefly describe Gov 2.0. Gov 2.0 touches on so many different aspects of technology and government – defining it is absolutely a challenge. I settled on a general definition as “a movement to spur innovation and participation in Government,” and then went on to describe different components of Gov 2.0. I probably could have added even more in the presentation – but the list ended up working well.
I was sure to talk about Manor, Texas as an example for Gov 2.0. Using Manor as an example was an easy decision. The QR Code Program and Manor Labs are two great examples for Gov 2.0. They are also easy to describe to people who may never have heard of Gov 2.0, and people who are into Gov 2.0 know Manor – so it’s a win-win. Also, you can start talking about scalability with Gov 2.0 programs and I can brag that Dustin Haisler spoke to my class last semester.
The second example is one of my favorite examples of a Gov 2.0 initiative, coming from the San Ramon Fire Department. Check this app out if you have not heard about it, really cool history and story behind how the app was developed. The app is remarkable and an incredibly innovative idea of how to use technology. One component of the app will send an alert to a CPR Certified Citizen if a cardiac arrest dispatch is received, the citizen will be notified of the location and the closets difibulator. Just remarkable, and an incredible program. I got great feedback from this example. San Francisco is now modeling this app, so it will be interesting to hear how everything unfolds.
I also enjoyed using the San Ramon example because it’s a good example of where I feel like I fit into Gov 2.0. Gov 2.0 extends beyond a great programmer – I’ve noticed that when I talk to some people about Gov 2.0 they immediately associate me as a geeky-computer programming-MPA student (only 2 of the 3!). I’ve developed a passion for Gov 2.0 because it holds so much potential for government. It’s about getting access to data and information immediately, improving constituent services, crowd sourcing information, and empowering citizens. Gov 2.0 requires someone to identify an existing problem and conceptualize a solution – then someone to run with the idea and develop the program, with a lot of collaboration inbetween. Working on the San Ramon App must have been such an amazing experience for everyone.
Slides also covered Facebook, Twitter and FourSquare use by government. Also mentioned some Federal Gov 2.0 examples, (NASA, EPA, FOIA.gov, data.gov, recovery.gov.) I then went into some best practices and challenges for Gov 2.0. I think it worked out well, and gave a solid overview of Gov 2.0. Presentation ran just under 25 minutes.
Overall, this was a great weekend. I had a great time at the Summit and met a lot of great people. Remy DeCausemaker from the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) also spoke during the Gov 2.0 Session. Remy did an awesome job. Remy does some really interesting work and programming for Gov 2.0. Lots of cool work coming out of RIT – Remy mentioned an Election Result Dashboard, Information Visualizations, and lots of cool widgets. Great stuff, Remy was a pleasure to meet – hopefully we will be able to collaborate again.
Comments/feedback always appreciated. Wish I had the presentation recorded – the camera I was borrowing from the Summit ended up not working. All in all, great experience and can’t wait to do it again!