NS World Message Expands to Australia

The NS World message expanded to the Australia and New Zealand Public Sector Summit in Torquay, Australia (February 22 to 24, 2012).

The event, organized by CISCO and the Centre for Social Impact (CSI), focused on ways to engage citizens and address the complex challenges and intractable problems faced by governments in the 21st Century.

The NS World Project Leader Jocelyne Bourgon addressed this topic directly in a speech entitled “Governing in the 21 Century.” The talk presented guidance to senior practitioners on using the NS approach to serve beyond the predictable by leveraging the strengths of citizens, government and the private sector in resolving issues of collective significance.

The NS vision of a new relationship between government and citizens in which both work together for the betterment of society, resonated well with the attendees and speakers.

The conference provided an ideal context for innovative ideas and new approaches.

Other speakers included:
Rohan Silva, Senior Policy Adviser to the Prime Minister UK, on the topic of Great Britain’s Big Society initiative which seeks to build community and give citizens a greater voice in government;

Geoff Mulgan, Chief Executive, National Endowment for Science Technology and the Arts (NESTA), on social innovation;

David Halpern, Senior Fellow, Institute for Government and Currently Seconded to the Cabinet Office as Head of the ’Nudge Office,’ on the use of “soft power” or nudge techniques for improved policy outcomes in the UK;

Chris Vein, Deputy United States Chief Technology Officer for Government Innovation at the White House, on technological innovation within the US federal government;

Tarik Yousef, Chief Executive Officer, Silatech and Founding Dean of Public Policy, Dubai School of Government, on the future of the Arab Spring; and

Lindsay Tanner, Vice Chancellor’s Fellow at Victoria University and Former Minister for Finance and Deregulation, on the possibility of altering government culture for the better.