The Government Fix

The most common sentiment about government processes? Frustration.

Regardless of the level of government, you likely expect a barrage of paperwork and unnavigable bureaucracy whenever you have to interact with it. After working in both local and federal government, New America Public Interest Technology fellows Hana Schank and Sara Hudson knew this from the perspectives of both the citizen and the public servant. They set out to understand how people are approaching problem-solving in government, conducting nearly 70 interviews with with people inside of government from local to federal level. Their new book, The GovernmentFix: How to Innovate in Government, shares what they learned about common threads in government innovation, including who the real change-makers are, what successful projects look like, and why redesigning government can sometimes feel so very hard.

Join the Public Interest Technology program for a celebration of their new book The Government Fix and a discussion about how successful innovation in government begins.

Follow the conversation online using #GovernmentFix and following @NewAmericaPIT.

Reception to follow

Opening Remarks:

Hana Schank, @hanaschank
Co-author, The Government Fix: How to Innovate in Government

Sara Hudson, @saratexas
Co-author, The Government Fix: How to Innovate in Government

Participants:

Eric Hysen, @EricHysen
Director, Justice & Opportunity Initiative
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative

Jenny Toomey, @jennytoomey
International Program Director, Technology and Society
Ford Foundation

Ginger Spencer, @TalkingTrashPHX
Public Works Director
City of Phoenix

Haiyan Sui
Director of Technology Development
New York City Mayor’s Office of Economic Opportunity

Moderator:

Cecilia Muñoz, @cecmunoz
Vice President, Public Interest Technology and Local Initiatives
New America