Citizen Engagement

Is Open Data Worth the Hype?

“Transparency promotes accountability and provides information for citizens about what their Government is doing.  Information maintained by the Federal Government is a national asset.”                      – President Barack Obama, in Transparency and Open Government memo. Today, there is an increased focus on the value of open data, especially inRead… Read more »

8 of the Best Citizen Engagement Efforts in Government

Back in 2010, the White House launched Challenge.gov, a platform provided by the GSA that gave federal agencies the opportunity to create contests aimed at increasing public participation in the federal government. The idea of soliciting citizen input certainly isn’t a new one—state, local, and national governments have been using paper forms, websites, and (now)Read… Read more »

What Gov & Taylor Swift Have in Common

Police dash cams are important for things such as transparency, security, and incident documentation/verification. You know what they’re also great for? Video evidence of cops belting out Taylor Swift tunes. In a time when police officers need all the good publicity they can get, the Dover, Delaware Police Department posted a video on their YouTubeRead… Read more »

The Citizen as a Sensor: Engagement through GIS

Millennials are sometimes referred to as the “look down” generation. The assumption is no matter the time or place, our eyes are fixed on a hand-held device. And this comes at a great risk, as some do this while driving, jeopardizing pedestrians and other drivers’ safety. Hearing these stories, parents shake their heads and wonderRead… Read more »

Unless There’s a Ring on My Finger, We’re Not Engaged

Once upon a time engaged meant going from single to partnered. Or it meant a variation of being busy – for better worse. These days engagement is such a buzzword in business-speak that it oversaturates our workplace communications. And this engagement isn’t a romantic proposal; it’s a request for our undivided attention. Is asking forRead… Read more »

Innovation Reimagined in Kansas City

There is no one universal definition for innovation. And innovation takes different forms at every level of government. Even in Kansas City, Missouri, innovation has taken many forms. This past year, the city launched a citizen engagement portal and leveraged open data. The woman spearheading those initiatives is Ashley Hand. She is the City’s Chief InnovationRead… Read more »

Nutrient Sensor Challenge: Innovation by Another Name

Freshwater nutrient pollution alone costs the U.S. more than $2 billion each year. And that stat is an underestimate because it doesn’t account for brackish estuaries or the 95,000 miles of salty coasts. In an effort to help address this problem, EPA is part of the Challenging Nutrients Coalition, a group of federal agencies, universities,Read… Read more »