Whatever you call it, GovCamp, CitizenGov, OpenGov…it is about getting people involved in the government systems and opening the government systems to innovation. On June 8, I attend GovCamp to join the conversation between community and government in an unconference model to collaborate on multiple concepts. The morning opened with plenary from Microsoft, brief description of the day and lightning talks about government processes, did you know it takes 24 signatures to get a white board marker? There is a flow chart to prove it! This really set the mood for the day.
Through the sessions and the networking sessions, I discovered that there are a lot of people trying to work with systems, but also lots working against systems and then of course some working from within the system.
I attended a session on “Changing the Education System in Ontario” and learned that there are a lot of players in action, but that there are tons of ways to get in and it is going to be different depending on the project and to think about those players that aren’t always obvious. Media? Parents? Trustees? City Councilors?
In the afternoon, I attend a session on “Exploring Citizen-led participation in policy-making” and chose to be in the “Don’t stop believing” group. I chose to be in the group, because I am optimistic about what can be done and how the people can lead us. I was happy to see that we were by far the biggest group in the room and there are a lot of other fellow believers!
Lastly, the best find of the day… @OPS_innovates – Ontario Public Service innovation and ideas happening from within. They hosted an unofficial TEDx event with their staff. How cool is that??!!?!?!