Citizens use of the Internet

My friend Geordie Adams at Publivate tweeted today about a report on the use of the internet by citizens in the USA. The report by Pew Internet is on Government online and shows that US citizens are more and more turning to the internet to access government in the US.

Fully 82% of internet users (representing 61% of all American adults) looked for information or completed a transaction on a government website.

The report found that:

• 48% of internet users have looked for information about a public policy or issue online with their local, state or federal government

• 46% have looked up what services a government agency provides

• 41% have downloaded government forms

• 35% have researched official government documents or statistics

• 33% have renewed a driver’s license or auto registration

• 30% have gotten recreational or tourist information from a government agency

• 25% have gotten advice or information from a government agency about a health or safety issue

• 23% have gotten information about or applied for government benefits

• 19% have gotten information about how to apply for a government job

• 15% have paid a fine, such as a parking ticket

• 11% have applied for a recreational license, such as a fishing or hunting license

The report identifies several other common characteristics regarding citizens’ interactions with government. Specifically, these interactions are frequently:  

• Data driven – Efforts by government agencies to post their data online are resonating with citizens. Fully 40% of online adults went online in the preceding year to access data and information about government (for instance, by looking up stimulus spending, political campaign contributions or the text of legislation).

• Organized around new online platforms – Citizen interactions with government are moving beyond the website. Nearly one third (31%) of online adults use online platforms such as blogs, social networking sites, email, online video or text messaging to get government information.

• Participatory – Americans are not simply going online for data and information; they want to share their personal views on the business of government. Nearly one quarter (23%) of internet users participate in the online debate around government policies or issues, with much of this discussion occurring outside of official government channels. 

The study also found that 40% of online users search for basic information about government and that the use of the internet is directly proportional to the users level of income and education - the more educated and those with higher incomes use the internet with greater frequency.  The report also found that Social Media has the potential of reaching currently underserved populations.  This is a fascinating study and is in-line with some of the conclusions of IPAC's study on the use of social media.

Governor General presents Vanier Medal

Yesterday the Governor General of Canada presented the Vanier Medal to Dr. Gordon S. Smith at a ceremony at Rideau Hall. It was a wonderful occasion and IPAC was proud to have Her Excellency preside over this important ceremony.

Dr Smith, Wynne Young (IPAC Prez) and I arrived at 9:30 and where greeted by the wonderful staff at Rideau Hall. We were shown where the ceremony would take place & what we had to do. After we went to the Madame Vanier room and were offered coffee, tea etc as we waited for the ceremony to begin at 10:30.

The Governor General gave a wonderful speech about public service which you should all read. Wynne Young then thanked the GG for her hospitality & introduced the 2009 Vanier medal laureate, Dr. Smith. Dr. Smith then received his medal from the Governor General & spoke for a few minutes about the public service and his career and his connection to Rideau Hall.

After the singing of "O Canada" we were invited to a wonderful reception where the GG joined and mingled with the guests.

It was a wonderful event and we were very grateful that the Governor General was able to preside over this year's ceremony.

Tweeting Politicians

There is an interesting article in the May 6th issue of the Economist about politicians and their ever increasing use of Twitter. As the article notes tweeting makes politicians seem more accessible but does it change behaviour?

In Chile, the new President requested that his cabinet all tweet and in Japan there are 485 politicians tweeting versus 3 a year ago. The key question with any public figure who tweets is whether tweeters will tweet on controversial issues.

This phase of social media will be interesting to watch and to see if it changes people's perception of government.

Vanier Medal @ Rideau Hall

On Thursday May 13th, the Governor General, Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, will be presenting IPAC's highest award, the Vanier Medal, to Dr. Gordon S. Smith, the 2009 Vanier Medal recipient.

The Governor General is IPAC's patron and as such, we are honoured that she will be presiding over this ceremony at Rideau Hall.

The Vanier Medal is one of the highest forms of recognition for Canadian public administrators. It was created in 1962 in honour of Canada’s second Canadian Governor General, the Right Honourable Georges-P. Vanier, and is awarded annually by IPAC as a mark of distinction and exceptional achievement to a person who has shown distinctive leadership in public administration and public service in Canada, or who, by his/her writings, has made a significant contribution in the field of public administration or public service in Canada.

Dr. Gordon S. Smith is the Executive Director of the Centre for Global Studies, University of Victoria and a former distinguished Canadian public servant.

Dr. Smith is well-known as both a practitioner and as an academic in public administration and has demonstrated excellence throughout his long career. Dr. Smith’s involvement within the Government of Canada began with a focus on security and defence in the 1960s and he quickly advanced to increasingly complex and demanding positions, including Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs; Canadian Ambassador to the European Union; Ambassador to the Canadian Delegation to NATO; and Secretary to Cabinet for Federal-Provincial Relations. He played the principal role in drafting the major document setting out Canada’s defence policy in the 1970s. He served as a valued adviser on constitutional questions in the eighties.

After retiring from the Government of Canada, Gordon Smith continued serving the interests of Canada within an increasingly complex and interdependent world. In 1997 he joined the University of Victoria as Executive Director of the Centre for Global Studies. He was also Chair of the Board of Governors of the International Development Research Centre from 1997 to 2007 and was appointed to the Centre for International Governance Innovation’s International Advisory Board of Governors in 2006. He demonstrated leadership, networking and idea generating skills during a collaborative project between CIGI and the Centre for Global Studies at the University of Victoria. This project “L20” was ground breaking in paving the way for the recent meeting of heads of government in Washington and the London meeting that focused on solutions to the financial crisis.

Dr. Smith is also a prolific writer and is the author of “Canada and Afghanistan: Is it Working?”among many other books and articles.

I will update all of you on Thursday after the ceremony & I hope to post some pictures as well.

British Election - today's the vote

Well, in what seems like an historic election, voters in the United Kingdom go to the polls today to elect a new government.  Polls indicate that the Conservatives have the lead in the popular vote, but that Labour may end up with a plurality in terms of seats with the Liberal-Democrats holding the balance of power.

The Institute for Policy Research in the UK published the results of a survey of "prospective parliamentary candidates" in winnable seats to ascertain how they would react to a "hung" parliament.

In the event of a hung parliament, a post-election deal between Labour and Liberal Democrats could be more politically sustainable than a deal between the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives, according to results from the survey.

And the Globe & Mail today comments on the level of policy debate during the British election versus Canadian general elections.

As voters in Britain queue at the polls today, Canadian political parties could stand to learn a great deal from the political campaign now ending. British politicians offered a higher quality of policy thinking than anything comparable in recent Canadian elections.

It has been a very interesting election in the UK and if the polls are correct, it should continue to be very interesting over the next few days as the party leaders deal with the fallout of the election.

ROB & me

A little while ago I was contacted and asked if I wanted to be interviewed for a piece that was set to appear in the Report on Business magazine of the Globe & Mail.  The piece was on public sector leadership and the challenges facing governments.  Of course I said yes, that would be fun.

The piece is actually part of a series by the Certified Management Accountants (CMA) that is looking at leadership and advertising their Executive CMA program (which by coincidence I graduated from last year - the person writing the article did not know this until I told him).

Anyway, here is the article...I hope you enjoy it.

Happy 100th!!

Today is the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Canadian Navy by the Parliament of Canada through the passage of the Canadian Naval Services Act on May 4, 1910. 

In those 100 years the men and women of the Canadian Navy have served this country with distinction, in World War I and II, in the Korean War and in many other conflicts. Imagine the scope of operations for the Navy, with an Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic areas to patrol - that is quite a big coastline.  On top of which, in recent years, we have also sent our Navy to the Persian Gulf and to Haiti.

Happy Birthday to that great Canadian institution - the Canadian Navy!!