How are new communication technologies redefining the form and function of governance? How should these tools mature to more effectively enhance service delivery, improve the outputs of policymaking, and expand access to the political process?

We were privileged to host an event on Monday to discuss these topics and, as it turned out, quite a bit more. We hosted this event in recognition that ‘open-government’ and ‘Gov 2.0’ have yet to reach their full potential in practical government applications. Our expert panel and highly engaged audience sought to articulate why this was and what we can do to realize the new opportunities ahead of us in the field of governance. From the nature of participatory government to issues of digital divide and access to education, they proposed ideas on how we can evolve a governance system that isn’t just different, but better.

Design research is foundational to creating products, services, and systems that respond to human needs. In the public and international development sectors, understanding and meeting human needs are critical for improved livelihoods and better governance.

Yet despite its utility, design research is largely overlooked by many institutions important to a well-functioning society. This oversight is unsurprising — the definition, purpose, and role of design research is not well-known. But in collecting the critical data they need to run their programs, these institutions do engage in ‘design research’. The information they gather, however, is purely functional- ‘just good enough’. But a lack of deliberation and formalization in process limits the value of research, and thus the utility of collected data.

The nature of citizen-government interaction is changing. Rhetorically familiar terms like Gov 2.0 and participatory democracy have emerged to describe this shift. Yet for all the exciting developments, from projects like SeeClickFix to OpenStreetMaps, we have yet to formalize an approach for institutions looking to leverage social media in the design and function of government bureaucracies. A critical next step in ‘social media for social change’ will be the maturation of these tools and their expanded, formalized use in political engagement and the delivery of critical services.

“Citizen 2.0: Social Media and the Future of Participatory Government” is thus a conversation not of what’s and why’s, but of when’s and how’s. Hosted by Reboot, this timely session will discuss how to bake the capacities of social media deeply inside government service delivery and policymaking here in the United States and abroad.

We’ve written previously about the potential of mobile banking to help marginalized populations overcome poverty’s debilitating effects. Elsewhere, you can find extensive data on the enormous financial potential of mobile banking. Indeed, the alignment of corporate and development interests in the sector suggests a sustainable, double bottom-line opportunity.

Through strategic cooperation, mobile operators, governments, and financial experts can each achieve their respective goals — profit for the former, improved livelihoods for the latter two — and empower the poor to securely save, better manage day-to-day risk, and seize new opportunities to improve their lives.

Personal Democracy Forum hosted a highly thoughtful conversation at NYU last night. As is their wont, they convened some very bright but divergent minds to discuss Wikileaks and what recent developments in online and offline advocacy suggest about the future of internet freedom.

As it turned out, Wikileaks was only the nominal topic of conversation. Discussion quickly progressed beyond spoiled-on-arrival narratives of press freedom and Julian Assange’s liberty. The conversation was as much about internet rights as it was about the fundamental social contract between citizen and state. If you care about the future, this is the conversation to be having right now.