There has been no shortage of natural disasters in the past decade, all of which have devastated communities and torn lives and hearts apart. In January 2010, a 7.3 magnitude earthquake shattered the small Caribbean country of Haiti. The tremor killed more than 220,000 and left hundreds of thousands more displaced. Six months following thisRead… Read more »
Our partners at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation recently published a great piece on their Challenges to Democracy blog by Hollie Russon Gilman that we are re-posting here. Gilman’s insightful article about innovation in governance is the third in a series (first and second), and we hope you will read it belowRead… Read more »
What is the secret sauce for creating an innovation culture in your agency? Successful inventions often spring from the minds of individual inventors – we often think of Thomas Edison at the classic inventor. But successful innovation is a team sport, according to a new Harvard Business Review article by a team of researchers –Read… Read more »
If you want to know about major innovation in the public sector then look to NASA. The space agency is a crown jewel of government innovation and a global role model for groundbreaking scientific research and discovery. NASA serves as a reminder to America of what’s possible when Uncle Sam harnesses his full potential, asRead… Read more »
At every level of government, citizens are working to learn more and connect, share their ideas, effect change, and improve services. And despite this growing trend of moving all conversations online, there are many government entities that are hesitant to formally endorse or launch this kind of dialogue. Common questions include: “what if the dialogueRead… Read more »
Do you have a creative and effective government program or initiative, or know of one that deserves recognition? If so, you now have an extra week to submit an application for the Innovations in American Government Award. Administered by the Ash Center at Harvard Kennedy School, the Award is given to programs that serve asRead… Read more »
At Accela, we’re committed to finding ways to leverage the talents and ideas of civic entrepreneurs and open data hackers to benefit the governments we serve. That’s why we’re excited to announce the Accela App Challenge. The App Challenge offers a total of $25,000 in cash prizes to developers that build a new civic appRead… Read more »
Do you have a creative and effective government program or initiative, or know of one that deserves recognition? If so, there is still time to submit an application for the Innovations in American Government Award. Administered by the Ash Center at Harvard Kennedy School, the Award is given to programs that serve as examples ofRead… Read more »
In launching our innovation program, my colleagues and I surprisingly received the most push-back from our most innovative colleagues. “We’re already innovating!” was the common refrain. True dat. We have jaw-droppingly talented colleagues who are doing amazing things to help U.S. exporters. However, these best practices aren’t often widely shared across an organization with officesRead… Read more »
In the U.S. Commercial Service within the International Trade Administration, as our exporters’ needs change, so must we. Though it might seem an oxymoron for a U.S. Government agency to tout its innovative approaches, the reality is that we – and our U.S. clients — face myriad issues on a daily basis that require customizedRead… Read more »