Intelligent Design and Open Government

At the same time, government are rushing to launch 'open data' portals, promising new public engagement tools and tweeting their press releases.  Faced with 21st century pressures from new technologies, a vigilant media, frustrated legislators and a public that increasingly demands more transparency, accountability and participation, they are scrambling to become (or to be seen as) more 'open', as Ontario's Open Government initiative promises.

From an article called Flying Blind, no less.

It's all true - people want, but they know not what, so to err on the side of plenty say they want the whole cake.  Political people know what they want - to quash their foes, in part, and to be victorious, in part.  But why?  As we've seen with Stephen Harper, even the most ardent mandates get lost over time.

I ask this question of people all the time - why do you get up in the morning?  Why do you have this job, not another, or work with that firm, not this one?  If we can't honestly answer the question "this is what I hope to have accomplished before I die," then what are we doing but going through the motions?

Why do we really want Open Government?  Are we worried about what's going on in the dark corners of our legislatures?  Do we feel underrepresented, or do we simply like the idea of being engaged?  Are we focused on ensuring our personal interests are acted upon - and are we willing to see how those interests interact with the interests of others?

Or do we want Open Government?  Do we really want to know what goes into the sausage - or is that information we'd rather live without?  

The opinions within political circles on each of these issues is all over the map.  They know where they think their track will take them - either back to a time of greater freedom and personal independence or forward into an equitable society - but they don't know for sure.  But it doesn't matter.

It should matter.  There's much more to this global shift towards open government, the rise of social media and the preponderance of civic engagement groups than we give it credit for.

And on top of that directory is a map, showing the relationships between all those things. It's a crystal clear articulation of the product, directly relatable to the mission.  In my experience it's very hard to do great design in an organization without a clear, well defined product architecture. And in many cases, just like the mission, it's the designer's jog to help figure out and evolve this architecture.