Writer
Jeff Ferguson
Editor, Government In The Lab
48 articles in the archive
Jeff Ferguson is the editor of Government In The Lab. He maintains this archive of articles published between 2010 and 2013 and writes the topical context that surrounds each piece.
The archive's editorial layer — the section essays, the per-article topical context, and the About the Era piece — is his work. The original article copy from the magazine's 2010–2013 run is preserved in spirit but not reconstructed; honest editorial framing is the rebuild's contribution.
Articles by Jeff
Every piece in the archive credited to Jeff Ferguson.
Open Data · March 12, 2013
Open Data to the Next Level: Why and How to Involve the Private Sector
On taking open-data programs past public-sector publication and into private-sector reuse — the supply, demand, and intermediary infrastructure that turns published datasets into civic and commercial value.
Civic Tech · February 4, 2013
Thoughts on Civic Crowdfunding with Rodrigo Davies
An interview with civic-crowdfunding researcher Rodrigo Davies on what civic crowdfunding actually is, where it overlaps with traditional public finance, and the platforms emerging to host it.
Civic Tech · November 19, 2012
Le crowdsourcing : une source d'innovation pour entreprises et organisations
(Crowdsourcing: A Source of Innovation for Enterprises and Organisations)
On crowdsourcing as a source of innovation for enterprises and public organisations — case studies and the open data / open innovation interface.
Open Government · October 8, 2012
The Future of Freedom of Information in the United States
On the achievements and remaining challenges in U.S. Freedom of Information practice — agency backlogs, exemption growth, and reform proposals.
Open Data · September 10, 2012
Tim Davies: 5 Stars of Open Data Engagement
Tim Davies's 5-star framework for open-data engagement — moving past publication into structured, two-way engagement with reuse communities.
Politics · August 30, 2012
Why Governments Barter Women's Human Rights
On the political-economy patterns by which governments trade away women's human-rights protections for short-term coalition or trade objectives.
Government 2.0 · August 12, 2012
eGov vs eBiz: Análisis Cualitativo
(eGov vs eBiz: A Qualitative Analysis)
A qualitative comparison between e-government and e-business service delivery — what each can learn from the other and where the analogies break.
Civic Tech · July 22, 2012
A Virtual 'Line-Up'?
On police use of social-media imagery for suspect identification — what counts as evidence, what doesn't, and the due-process concerns.
Politics · July 5, 2012
Verizon Claims Right to Edit What You See on the Internet
Verizon's net-neutrality court filing claiming First Amendment protection to edit and prioritize internet content — and the civil-liberties response.
International · June 4, 2012
Macedonia and Radical Islamism: Ethnic Tensions Thrive
Reporting on rising ethnic and religious tensions in Macedonia and the political response across the Balkan region.
Open Government · May 22, 2012
A New Proactive Transparency: Open Data and Access to Information Promises and Challenges
On the shift from reactive FOIA-driven transparency to proactive open-data publication — what governments are committing to and where it falls short.
Government 2.0 · April 30, 2012
Gov 2.0 Is Not Just Government as a Platform
Reframing the Gov 2.0 conversation past the platform-only metaphor — service delivery, citizen co-production, and the institutional culture changes required.
Open Government · April 20, 2012
Hawaii Open Government Under Attack
Coverage of legislation in Hawaii that would have substantially narrowed open-meeting and public-records protections, and the coalition that opposed it.
Social Media in Government · April 15, 2012
Living on the Edge in Social Media: Two Case Studies of Australian Social Media Issues
Two Australian case studies of social-media policy and incident response — what worked, what didn't, and the institutional lessons.
International · April 4, 2012
Открыт офис W3C Россия — W3C Opens Office in Russia
(W3C Opens Office in Russia)
The W3C announces the opening of its W3C Россия office, expanding standards-body presence into the Russian-speaking web-development community.
Social Media in Government · March 23, 2012
Social Media Drives Five Times As Much Traffic To Australian Government Sites As Online News Media
Analytics analysis showing social-media referral traffic substantially outpacing online news referrals to Australian government domains during early 2012.
Open Government · March 10, 2012
Attacks on Open Government on the Rise in the United States
A summary of state-level legislation in early 2012 narrowing public-records access, FOI exemptions, and government-meeting transparency.
Politics · March 8, 2012
Draconian Discrimination: One Man's Battle With U.S. Immigration Law For Fairness, Justice, And American Citizenship
A profile of one immigrant's protracted fight with U.S. immigration law and the citizenship process, drawing on UNROW Human Rights Impact Litigation Clinic case work.
Government 2.0 · February 16, 2012
Nick Charney Op-Ed: Finding a Path to Sustainability
Canadian Gov 2.0 commentator Nick Charney's op-ed on building sustainable models for civic technology projects past the launch hype.
Sunlight Foundation · February 13, 2012
Sunlight Foundation: Today in Open Government — 2/13/2012
The Sunlight Foundation's daily Today in Open Government roundup for 13 February 2012 — federal transparency, congressional disclosures, and lobbying records.
Open Data · February 8, 2012
Data Visualization Platform Weave Now Open Source
Announcement of the Weave (Web-based Analysis and Visualization Environment) data-visualization platform going open source for civic and academic use.
Sunlight Foundation · January 13, 2012
Sunlight Weekly Roundup: Thanks to Citizens United, Americans "don't think the government works for them anymore"
Sunlight Foundation's weekly roundup on declining trust in government following Citizens United, with poll data and links to the underlying coverage.
International · December 12, 2011
Colombian President Signs Anti-Discrimination Law
Reporting on Colombia's newly passed anti-discrimination law and the legislative path that brought it to President Santos's desk.
Sunlight Foundation · November 21, 2011
Sunlight Weekly Roundup: Indiana Narrows Public's Ability to Review Government Emails
Sunlight Foundation's weekly roundup on Indiana legislation that narrowed public-records access to government email correspondence.
Open Data · November 8, 2011
The ROI of Open Government Data: New Jobs
An economic-impact analysis arguing that open government data publication produces measurable downstream employment in the firms reusing it.
Civic Tech · October 14, 2011
Civic Engagement App, Change By Us, Enters the Commons
Change By Us — the civic-engagement platform built for New York City — released into open commons for adoption by other municipalities.
Government 2.0 · September 26, 2011
Thoughts, Reflections, and Takeaways from Gov 2.0 LA
Conference notes from Gov 2.0 LA — the major themes, the panels worth remembering, and what the gathering signalled about where civic technology was heading.
Open Data · September 18, 2011
Pourquoi n'y a-t-il pas de consensus sur une licence open data en France
(Why is there no consensus on an open-data licence in France)
On the licensing fragmentation across French open-data programs and why the absence of a single agreed licence has slowed downstream reuse.
Politics · September 9, 2011
Terrorism: The Dire Threat of Dolts
An editorial on counter-terrorism overreach and the gap between perceived threat and the actual capability profile of the actors invoked.
International · September 2, 2011
El Open Government llega a los programas electorales
(Open Government Reaches the Electoral Manifestos)
On the appearance of open-government commitments in Spanish electoral manifestos across the political spectrum during the 2011 cycle.
Politics · July 28, 2011
Lacking Votes, Boehner Pulls Debt Bill from the Floor
Coverage of the moment Speaker John Boehner pulled the House debt-ceiling bill from the floor for lack of votes during the 2011 debt-limit standoff.
Government 2.0 · July 22, 2011
11 questions de Henri-François Gautrin sur le potentiel du Web 2.0
(11 questions from Henri-François Gautrin on the potential of Web 2.0)
The Quebec parliamentary consultation document — 11 questions from Henri-François Gautrin to citizens on the potential of Web 2.0 in government.
Government 2.0 · July 8, 2011
Speech from NetHui on Open Government and Government 2.0
Speech text from NetHui — New Zealand's internet community gathering — on open government and the Government 2.0 movement in the Asia-Pacific region.
International · June 8, 2011
Al-Qaeda Criticizes Democratic Revolution in Egypt
On al-Qaeda's public criticism of Egypt's democratic transition and what the response signals about jihadist messaging during the Arab Spring.
Civic Tech · May 15, 2011
Hackathon at Stanford: Opening Up Government Data
Coverage of a Stanford hackathon focused on building tools that consume and visualize federal and state open-data feeds.
Social Media in Government · April 27, 2011
Battle of the Sockpuppets: Part of the Discussion at Media140 Brisbane
Craig Thomler's writeup of the sockpuppet panel at Media140 Brisbane — what governments and platforms can and cannot do about coordinated inauthentic accounts.
Open Data · April 4, 2011
March 2011: Open Data News and Resources
A monthly roundup of open-data news and reusable resources from March 2011 — government datasets, tooling, and notable reuse projects.
International · April 2, 2011
Is Libya's Rebel Leader CIA-Trained?
Reporting on the background of Libyan rebel commander Khalifa Haftar and his time in the United States, in the context of the 2011 NATO intervention.
Civic Tech · March 29, 2011
What the Heck a QR Code Is — and How to Use It Right
A practical primer on QR codes for government and nonprofit communicators — what they are, where they help, and the common implementation mistakes.
International · March 1, 2011
U.S. Freezes $32 Billion in Gaddafi Bank Accounts; U.K. Adds $19 Billion
Coverage of the U.S. and U.K. asset-freeze actions against the Gaddafi regime in early 2011, including the legal and diplomatic mechanisms involved.
International · February 22, 2011
Who Is Muammar al-Gaddafi?
A reference profile of Muammar al-Gaddafi compiled at the start of the 2011 Libyan civil war — biographical, political, and economic context.
International · January 18, 2011
President Kagame on Open Government in Rwanda
President Paul Kagame's remarks on Rwanda's open-government commitments and the implementation challenges facing post-conflict transparency programs.
Open Government · December 8, 2010
WikiLeaks Is a Blow to Open Government
An argument that the WikiLeaks cable release would create a backlash that hardens government secrecy rather than expand transparency.
Social Media in Government · November 15, 2010
Social Business Gains with IBM Lotus Connections 3.0
An evaluation of IBM Lotus Connections 3.0 for enterprise and government social-collaboration deployments at the time of its release.
Social Media in Government · November 5, 2010
Personal Social with Gist
A long-running review of Gist — the contact-aggregation service — for personal and professional social-media management.
Government 2.0 · October 25, 2010
Government 2.0: A Guide for City Makeovers
How early Government 2.0 cities — Manor, TX prominent among them — were rebuilding civic services around open APIs, citizen reporting tools, and lightweight digital infrastructure.
Civic Tech · October 20, 2010
Digital Heroes: Dafydd Vaughan and Jenny Poole
A Digital Heroes profile feature on UK civic technologists Dafydd Vaughan and Jenny Poole and their early Government Digital Service-adjacent work.
Civic Tech · October 10, 2010
CityCamp London — Really Bloody Marvellous
Government 2.0 writeup of CityCamp London — the inaugural CityCamp event in the UK pulling together civic technologists, council staff, and citizens to prototype service ideas over a weekend. Originally cross-posted from Catherine Howe's account of the event.