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Police officers distribute groceries in Indianapolis; Hong Kong police use 3D printers in criminal investigations; and, new report on government reform in New Zealand
Government Innovators Network 
 
April 13, 2017
In This Issue

Feature: New Platform for Efficiency in the Public Sector

What's New

In the News

Data-Smart City Solutions

Better, Faster, Cheaper

city skyline

New Platform for Efficiency in the Public Sector

Powered by the Government Innovators Network

The Operational Excellence in Government project, supported by the Laura and John Arnold Foundation and conducted in partnership with United States Common Sense, focuses on the very best state and local approaches to operational effectiveness.The project surveyed thousands of recommendations from over 200 reports and identified the 30 best studies, and then highlighted and analyzed trends and challenges across jurisdictions.
Explore the Operational Excellence in Government project>>

WHAT'S NEW


globe with data cords

The Data Revolution and the Sustainable Development Goals

Innovators Insights Blog

This post explores the potential for data to enable significant progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, agreed upon in 2015 by UN member governments, and the technical and policy challenges that must be surmounted along the way. Read more>>

dartboard

New Report on Government Reform in New Zealand

IBM Center for the Business of Government

"Interagency Performance Targets: A Case Study of New Zealand's Results Programme," coauthored by Rodney Scott, a visiting fellow at Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center, examines the new round of reform New Zealand undertook in 2012 to address ten important and persistent crosscutting problems. Read more>>

IN THE NEWS


In a First, Seattle Renters Could Get Own Voice in City Hall

Seattle city councilors are forming a new commission to focus on tenants, many of whom are becoming long-time renters as residents are faced with rising rents and generational shifts against homeownership, yet who often lack political power. This 15-person commission, believed to be the first of its kind in the nation, will work on a range of issues — many that address residents of color and those with lower income — such as fighting against tenant displacement from gentrification, addressing transportation problems, and highlighting public safety concerns. The city council recently approved the commission, and hearings could start in late spring or summer.

Hong Kong Police to Use 3D printers to Help Make Crime Scene Models

In Hong Kong, police are using 3D printers to reconstruct crime scenes during police investigations. While handcrafted models have historically been used to create scale models of buildings and other area features, officials hope that the 3D printers will speed the construction and review of complex architectural and other features. These scale reconstructions are used during court hearings, allowing witnesses to relay more detailed testimony, as well as to aid judges and other observers in understanding what occurred and where.

Computer Literacy for Seniors that Helps Address a Town’s EWaste

The IT department of Belmont, Massachusetts, is giving some seniors their own computers, helping them to become computer-literate, and addressing the town’s e-waste all at the same time. Each year that Belmont replaces some of its older computers, it donates the used computers (reinstalled with basic software) to some of its senior citizens, and offers them an introductory computer course on how to use the machine for a small fee. Aside from basic computer skills, the seniors begin the course by taking their computers apart, learning about the different components, and then putting them back together, making the machine less intimidating.

Indianapolis Police Officers Are Carrying the Groceries

The city of Indianapolis is partnering with Gleaners Food Bank in a pilot program that provides police officers with sacks of groceries to distribute to residents in need while they are on patrol or responding to calls. The Community Action Relief Effort (CARE) Bags program is meant to display to the community that officers are not just there to fight crime, but to serve the community in a broader sense to make it a better place for everyone. The program, which is currently being tested in select districts of the city, will be evaluated for the potential to expand citywide, and to include the participation of fire and emergency responders.

Paris Turns to Flower-Growing Toilet to Fight Public Urination

In their continuing battle against public urination, Paris officials have high hopes for the cost savings potential and eco-friendliness of the Uritrottoir, a public urinal that doubles as an attractive flower holder and that does not need to be manually scrubbed and maintained. The sleek urinal is environmentally sound because it does not use water and can produce compost to be used for public gardens and parks. Urine levels will be stored in a bed of dry straw, sawdust, or wood chips, which will be electronically monitored and carted away to be composted once the toilet is full.

DATA-SMART CITY SOLUTIONS


5 Steps to Recruit Tech Talent to Your City

City officials intent on using technology to improve the way they operate face a range of obstacles in convincing talented data analysts, systems architects, and coders to come work for them. Stephen Goldsmith presents five strategies for how a city can compete with tech giants like Google or Facebook that can offer much larger salaries, access to trendy products, and stylish work environments.

When Government Nudging Is Ethical

This article analyzes the ethical implications of government nudging — using behaviorally-informed policies to influence behavior — and argues that nudging as a principle is neither ethical nor unethical. Instead, whether individual nudges are ethical depends on their level of transparency, ability to withstand public scrutiny, and alignment with public values.

BETTER, FASTER, CHEAPER


A Way to Unlock the Value of an Airport

St. Louis is looking at entering into a public-private partnership to lease its airport to a qualified airport manager backed by private infrastructure funds — a model that exists in much of the rest of the world but not so much in the United States. Such a transaction could improve customer service and revenue for the airport, but it is important that the city remain a financial partner in the deal and that the city and manager develop enforceable operating standards.

ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER


Innovators Insights is the news digest from the Government Innovators Network on the latest in government innovations. This digest is sent out every two weeks and is compiled and written by the editorial staff of the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard Kennedy School. In each issue, the editorial team identifies top policy and programmatic news that is related to government innovations so that you can stay informed about creative government at its best.

Editor: Jessica Engelman
Researcher & Writer: Brendan St. Amant
Note: The stories in this newsletter link to source articles on other websites and may not be available after a certain length of time.



ABOUT THE ASH CENTER


The Roy and Lila Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation advances excellence in governance and strengthens democratic institutions worldwide. Through its research, education, international programs, and government innovations awards, the Center fosters creative and effective problem solving and serves as a catalyst for addressing many of the most pressing needs of the world's citizens. The Ford Foundation is a founding donor of the Center. Additional information about the Ash Center is available at http://ash.harvard.edu.

 
 
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