Citizen Engagement

Flipping the Classroom Upside Down

In school, we all had classes where the teachers would stand at the front of the room and lecture on material for an hour. And we all had classes where we wanted to fall asleep. Luckily there is a new, different approach to this traditional learning tactic: it’s flipping the classroom upside down. The premiseRead… Read more »

Don’t Hide the Issue

In the children’s movie, Robots, Rodney Copperbottom grows up hearing his role model, Mr. Bigweld, teach the world, “see a need, fill a need.” I won’t ruin the movie for you, but let’s just say that he ends up living this mantra out to its fullest. What I love about the movie (aside from itsRead… Read more »

Why IoT Is Needed in Gov

(For part one of our conversation with Deloitte, click here!) I used to run competitively in high school – specifically the 4X400 meter relay. The 4×400 is always the last race of the day and if you know anything about the 400 meter dash, you know that there is a strategy behind every move andRead… Read more »

Are Machines Going to Take Over My Job?

When I think about movies like Terminator or I, Robot I instantly worry about whether or not machines will take over my life. This might sound a bit dramatic or unreal, but it’s true. However, realistically though some jobs can now be done by machines. It’s both possible and logical to worry about whether orRead… Read more »

How Government Can Embrace the Sharing Economy

I recently attended the Association of Municipalities Ontario (AMO) Annual Conference, at which the sharing economy was top of mind for many policymakers. While the sharing economy presents many opportunities, governments in Ontario and elsewhere have been slow to embrace it and adequately address the inevitable challenges. What is the sharing economy? Noah Zon, PracticeRead… Read more »

A New Wave of Federal Customer Service

The customer is always right. Right? Well, that may not always be correct, but it is a good rule of thumb to follow. However, I think most of us tend to associate this golden rule with the private sector. But now, there seems to be more of a push from the public sector to betterRead… Read more »

Transforming Local Government In the Cloud

Emerging technology and local government initiatives are empowering cities and counties to transform how services are delivered to citizens, how staff communicate and collaborate. As a result, cities and counties are delivering improved services, driving higher levels of employee productivity, all while realizing significant cost savings. Office 365 has entered as a cost-effective option for… Read more »

Awesome Fed Channels on YouTube

Back in March 2009, GSA signed an agreement with YouTube which would allow government agencies to post content to this site in compliance with federal terms and conditions. By 2012, every major federal agency had a YouTube channel, and some were even featuring content specifically created for the platform. Compared to the other platforms I’veRead… Read more »