Abstract Deadline: September 9, 2016

The New Brunswick Social Policy Research Network (NBSPRN) is proud to host the third annual GovMaker Conference. GovMaker is designed to advance open government theory and practice by mobilizing knowledge, creating cross-sector relationships and building the capacity of citizens and governments to engage in open dialogue, open data, and open collaboration.

This year’s conference will take place over two days along the three streams, and key principles of open government, of participation, transparency and collaboration. Day 1: Open Government in Theory & Day 2: Open Government in Practice. Day 1 will include presentations and panels sharing knowledge and theories, and day 2 will include workshops designed to share tools, resources and experiences in open government practice.

At the frontiers of 21st century democracy, we are seeking stories and experiments that demonstrate how citizens and governments have been putting theory into practice. We seek abstracts for presentations on projects that have contributed to (or show promise of) making our institutions more open by small steps or quantum leaps.

The conference will offer concurrent panels and workshops along the three streams of participation, transparency and collaboration.

Four types of contributions are suggested:

1) Panel discussion (four panelists plus a moderator)

2) Presentation (lightning talk or pecha kucha)

3) Workshop

4) Poster presentations (including data visualization)

We welcome abstract submissions (maximum 250 words) outlining your proposed panel, presentation or workshop. Please indicate your selection in the title of your abstract.

Accepted abstracts will be invited to present during the conference. Those proposing a panel discussion will be asked to invite panelists and select a moderator. Those proposing a presentation will be invited to present for either 30 minutes or to give a 5-7 minute lightning talk. Accepted workshops will be asked to prepare a more detailed outline for the workshop which will be allotted 2 hours.

All presentations, panels and workshops will be filmed and included online on the GovMaker Conference website. The GovMaker Conference is organized and funded on a cost-recovery basis. All presenters are required to cover their own costs and register to attend and present (registration and payment can be made after acceptance notification has been received).

Decisions will be made on a first come, first serve basis, and participants will be notified no later than three weeks following the submission deadline.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Please email your submissions to info@rrps-nb-sprn.ca, in the subject line of the email include: 2016 Conférence GovMaker Conference Abstract Submission.

Please include:

• Title of your proposed session
• Indication of either panel, presentation, or workshop
• Indication of chosen theme: Participation, Transparency, Collaboration
• Abstract of up to 250 words.
• Presenting Author/Facilitator Name and Email
• Name and affiliation for all authors/facilitators (including presenting author).

ABOUT GOVMAKER

Participation – Getting information in: institutions effectively using the experience of citizens and expertise of academics to inform decision-making (e.g. consultations, expert committees, deliberative democracy, participatory budgeting).

Transparency – Pushing data & information out: institutions making data available for use and re-use by citizens in order to monitor policies, educate, advocate, create opportunities to improve services or solve public problems. (e.g. open data, dashboards, open parliament, data visualization).

Collaboration – Institutions working with citizens: to solve public problems, co-create policies, co-design services through inter-organizational and cross-sector partnerships, collaboration, and cooperation (crowdsourcing, prizes/challenges, public/social innovation labs).

The GovMaker Conference offers an unparalleled opportunity to interact with leaders in open data and open government. Last year’s conference featured high profile speakers such as:

• Hon Jocelyn Roy-Vienneau, Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick.;
• Hon Cathy Rogers, Minister of Social Development, New Brunswick;
• Nora Young, Host and Creator of CBC Radio’s Spark;
• Zaid Hassan, Author of the Social Labs Revolution and Co-founder of Reos Partners
• Dana Chisnell, Design researcher at the United States Digital Service and coauthor of The Handbook of Usability Testing
• Santiago Siri, President and Co-founder of DemocracyOS;
• Henry Mintzberg, Cleghorn Professor of Management Studies at the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University;
• Kevin Tuer, Managing Director of the Open Data Exchange.

ABOUT THE HOST

An open government strives for transparency, encourages civic participation, and promotes collaboration. The late Hon. Andy Scott had this same vision when he founded the New Brunswick Social Policy Research Network (NBSPRN). NBSPRN is a partnership between the Government of New Brunswick, the University of New Brunswick, Université de Moncton, CCNB, and NBCC with the mission to advance citizen engagement and evidence-based policy development.

Structured on the value of networked governance, NBSPRN takes a horizontal approach to policy making by bringing together citizens from across sectors: community organizations, civil servants, policy makers, business leaders, and academics. These types of cross-sectoral networks represent the combinations we need to increase citizen participation and create a more open form of government; one that develops solution with society, not for society.

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