Give us your ideas on how we can create our Open Government Plan.
This plan will help Interior:
This dialog concluded March 19, 2010.
View ideas/comments submitted below.
0 votes
I disagreeRather than post each of my "OpenGov" Ideas at 27 different websites, I have posted them at the GSA's website (since they are in the forefront of the OpenGov initiative). So, by this notice, the members of the OpenGov Team for this agency have been informed of those ideas. (At least, now, you can't say you were unaware of them.) http://opengsa.ideascale.com/a/pmd/29640-6960 ALSO -- Those OpenGov Team members, ...more »
Rather than post each of my "OpenGov" Ideas at 27 different websites, I have posted them at the GSA's website (since they are in the forefront of the OpenGov initiative). So, by this notice, the members of the OpenGov Team for this agency have been informed of those ideas. (At least, now, you can't say you were unaware of them.)
http://opengsa.ideascale.com/a/pmd/29640-6960
ALSO -- Those OpenGov Team members, and others tasked or involved in those matters, are also notified that news and information about implementation of the Open Government Directive in the various federal agencies will continue to be available through the following sources (see links below).
Therefore, it is YOUR choice about whether (or not) to be "in the loop" about the Open Government Directive.
Email-group --> http://groups.google.com/group/OpenGovernmentDirective
Wiki --> http://www.OpenGovPlaybook.org
Radio --> http://www.OpenGovRadio.com
Blog --> http://www.UStransparency.com
vr,
Stephen Buckley
moderator, OpenGovernmentDirective google-group
.
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1 vote
I disagreeIn an old StarTrek episode the robot Nomad sailed the universe seeking life, and upon finding it, implemented the fatal PrimeDirective. It is imperative that our organizational mission statements comply with a negative PrimeDirective, which may be stated: "It is our mission to improve the conditions for life, to grow in the ability to nurture life, and to explore all realms possibly related to life, universally seeking ...more »
In an old StarTrek episode the robot Nomad sailed the universe seeking life, and upon finding it, implemented the fatal PrimeDirective. It is imperative that our organizational mission statements comply with a negative PrimeDirective, which may be stated: "It is our mission to improve the conditions for life, to grow in the ability to nurture life, and to explore all realms possibly related to life, universally seeking to sustain biological diversity, to increase individual personal fulfillment, and to create a more stable, peaceful, and just society.
Already-proven engineering and ethical principals need to a greater degree be incorporated into the decision-making process. In particular, given its promise of finding optimal solutions, it is key that Nash Equilibrium models are used to form the daily decisions that determine how limited resources are spent, thus optimizing stewardship effectiveness. Great care must be made in structuring and reviewing the decision-making and implementation processes so that they, to borrow from perl philosophy, "do the right thing", quantifying and transparently reporting each step along the way, and flexibly accepting feedback without losing sight of the overall goal. It is a challenge and responsibility to build such a system, and we are fortunate that John Nash has already blazed the trail.
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1 vote
I disagreeWHAT Urge governments to publish granular permalinks for all documents on their websites. WHY * Enable citizens to reliably cite government websites on their personal blogs, on public sites like Wikipedia, or elsewhere. * Provide unique identifiers that enable aggregation of citations. * Make the civic discourse surrounding government websites more discoverable. HOW * An easy-to-deploy archival ...more »
WHAT
Urge governments to publish granular permalinks for all documents on their websites.
WHY
* Enable citizens to reliably cite government websites on their personal blogs, on public sites like Wikipedia, or elsewhere.
* Provide unique identifiers that enable aggregation of citations.
* Make the civic discourse surrounding government websites more discoverable.
HOW
* An easy-to-deploy archival server that can take page snapshots
o Hosts all permalinks
o Could be hosted by the agency or a third party
o Uses a software version-control tool as the primary database
o Allows other parties to replicate the data
o Likely an easy install of a Linux server distribution with the archival tools included
* Quick and easy integration solution
o Include Javascript on each page that ensures the archival server takes snapshots as each page changes
o The Javascript also walks through the HTML DOM to add permalinks to each paragraph
o The "easy integration" method works with even static HTML
* Long-term integration solution
o Option one
+ CMS pushes changes directly to the archival server
+ CMS integrates the archival server's permalinks directly into HTML
+ Most streamlined option
o Option two
+ A proxy server (base on Squid/Varnish?) that pushes changed content to the archival server
+ The proxy server modifies the content passing through it to add permalinks to the HTML
+ Works with any CMS and even static HTML
o More accessible
o No Javascript required
o Broadly applicable integration model (text filtering/formatting plugin) that works with even basic blog and CMS tools
* Mark up documents using paragraph/sectional anchor tags to create nice anchors that go directly to the correct paragraph
* Permalinks are human-readable URLs with timestamps, document ID, and an an anchor to the section/paragraph
o Example: Http://archive.house.gov/HR1586IH/20030318233035#S1b1Bii
o The example would point to section 1, subsection b, chapter 1, paragraph B, clause ii in SB 1234 on May 2, 2009 at 8:26:16 am UTC
WHEN
* We are fund-raising to both hire programmers to write the tools and to have codeathons where programmers donate their time to write Open Source tools they believe in.
* We are recruiting different levels of government implementation one agency at a time. Your support on http://citability.org will illustrate the demand.
* We are asking various proprietary software vendors to implement this standard in their software products.
WHERE
* Http://citability.org - sign up and show your support
* http://citability.pbworks.com - to help promote or to feedback on the internal standards we are suggesting. We are talking various implementations in different software to backups and server failover settings.
Demos at DCcodeathon.eventbrite.com
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6 votes
I disagreeOMB Watch encourages the Department of the Interior to release to the public more information about regulatory decisionmaking. For information related to rulemakings, any documents, communications, or other material Interior's rulemaking agencies (e.g. Fish and Wildlife, Bureau of Land Management, etc.) choose to disclose should be placed in the electronic rulemaking docket accessible to the public at Regulations.gov. ...more »
OMB Watch encourages the Department of the Interior to release to the public more information about regulatory decisionmaking. For information related to rulemakings, any documents, communications, or other material Interior's rulemaking agencies (e.g. Fish and Wildlife, Bureau of Land Management, etc.) choose to disclose should be placed in the electronic rulemaking docket accessible to the public at Regulations.gov. Specifically, we suggest disclosure of the following types of information:
- Any study, research, or other input used during the rulemaking, regardless of whether the information ultimately informed the decisionmaking;
- All written communications among federal offices and agencies, including the White House Office of Management and Budget;
- All substantive communications, both written and oral, between the agency and an outside party pertaining to the rulemaking.
Online disclosure is critical to meaningful transparency. We recognize that some of these materials may already be routinely available in agencies’ paper dockets or through a FOIA request, but, in the Internet era, the public expects online access to documents of interest. Online rulemaking dockets available at Regulations.gov should become the authoritative dockets, that is, identical to those maintained by the agencies in hard copy.
Interior must also do a better job describing public comments placed in its online dockets. Currently, in many cases, the document title for all public comments is identical within one docket, making it impossible for users to determine who filed a comment without opening each individual PDF. Most other agencies include the commenter's name in the document title.
Matthew R. Madia
Federal Regulatory Policy Analyst
OMB Watch
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1 vote
I disagreeIn order to promote greater transparency and accountability I would recommend that the Department resume its DOI Working Capital Fund meetings so that all Bureaus and Offices under the Department have a voice and a vote on items for which the Department is billing them. This was a very good practice, but for some reason has been discontinued. It would be great if we could also broadcast these meetings over at the very ...more »
In order to promote greater transparency and accountability I would recommend that the Department resume its DOI Working Capital Fund meetings so that all Bureaus and Offices under the Department have a voice and a vote on items for which the Department is billing them. This was a very good practice, but for some reason has been discontinued. It would be great if we could also broadcast these meetings over at the very least closed circuit television (if we could develop a DOI version of CSPAN) and also through Podcasts/online so that DOI employees understand this part of the DOI budget process. There is a sense that all Bureaus have to scour their budgets, but that the overhead at the Department is growing and there is less and less information about Department services and their costs to the rest of the DOI organization.
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1 vote
I disagreeRecently, I read in the Anchorage Daily News that Secretary Salazar announced that the DOI was going to help fund a Climate Research Center in Alaska. In another article right next to this one was an announcement that the Department of Commerce was also planning on starting a Climate Research Center in Alaska through NOAA. Why are we doing duplicative facilities. As a tax payer I don't find this acceptable. My idea ...more »
Recently, I read in the Anchorage Daily News that Secretary Salazar announced that the DOI was going to help fund a Climate Research Center in Alaska. In another article right next to this one was an announcement that the Department of Commerce was also planning on starting a Climate Research Center in Alaska through NOAA. Why are we doing duplicative facilities. As a tax payer I don't find this acceptable. My idea is to drop the funding for the DOI facility and let the folks that deal with climate anyway (NOAA) construct a climate research center if one is needed.
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4 votes
I disagreeDisruptive Technologies: A Holistic, Pragmatic Approach New technologies are emerging at a faster pace than Agencies can swallow. The rate of obsolescence outpaces the pace of change. Despite the new technology flood, Agencies lack a strategy to on-board these disruptions. As a result, they often react, flounder, or simply ignore them. We can solve these problems in four major areas of practice: Leadership ...more »
Disruptive Technologies: A Holistic, Pragmatic Approach
New technologies are emerging at a faster pace than Agencies can swallow. The rate of obsolescence outpaces the pace of change.
Despite the new technology flood, Agencies lack a strategy to on-board these disruptions. As a result, they often react, flounder, or simply ignore them.
We can solve these problems in four major areas of practice:
Leadership and Management: How must leaders change with new technologies? How will this transform Agencies from the inside out?
Customer Strategy: How is the public behaving differently online? How can I reach them where they are?
Enterprise Strategy: Internal systems are connecting with external - How will I keep up with the dizzying pace? Employees are adopting collaboration and social tools without my control - How should I manage?
Innovation and Design: Experimenting on the general public is a bad idea, so how can I learn in a safe place? What vendors and providers should I lean on?
Here is a great slideshare webinar to get you started:
http://www.slideshare.net/charleneli/developing-a-social-strategy-webinar
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1 vote
I disagreeUsing social networking tools inside the Department and its Bureaus for the purpose of providing a secure and productive environment for communities of practice would go a long ways towards addressing many of our succession planning issues. The combination of retirements and fewer replacements results in too many lost chances for knoweldge transfer and effective mentoring. Inexperienced staff in local offices are too ...more »
Using social networking tools inside the Department and its Bureaus for the purpose of providing a secure and productive environment for communities of practice would go a long ways towards addressing many of our succession planning issues. The combination of retirements and fewer replacements results in too many lost chances for knoweldge transfer and effective mentoring. Inexperienced staff in local offices are too often left effectively cut off from experienced peers. Formal communities of practice with a good social networking tool set can mitigate the issue.
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3 votes
I disagreeIt is very difficult to collaborate with external partners in such areas as data sharing, document creation, brain storming, etc. This has been a big problem in moving renewable energy projects forward. Having collaborative tools in an extranet setting is long overdue.
1 vote
I disagreeI see most of the off topic ideas had the most votes and commentary. I guess the fact that they landed in the garbage heap tells us all we need to know about your intention with this website...
4 votes
I disagreeGood Morning, I know not if this pertains or if it is within the scope of this. I suggest we create a luncheon/ potluck each month for the Native American people that work within DOI in order to foster the tribal member mentality that we all come from. I am new to this DC construct but I now understand why so many of my kinfolk return home and do not stay on working here. Let me explain: In our home setting we ...more »
Good Morning,
I know not if this pertains or if it is within the scope of this.
I suggest we create a luncheon/ potluck each month for the Native American people that work within DOI in order to foster the tribal member mentality that we all come from.
I am new to this DC construct but I now understand why so many of my kinfolk return home and do not stay on working here.
Let me explain:
In our home setting we live and work in very close proximity to most all our relatives & our acquaintances, we attend ceremonies with most as well those that are Native American.
Upon this DC relocation, I know of very few Natives to interact with, know of zero ceremonies to attend, know of zero gatherings offered to Native Americans due to our collective or likewise mindedness.
In my previous employer, we had potlucks for b-days, employees joining or leaving, deaths or other significant life events within our ranks, of course plus the holidays.
I have seen only one event thus far and I only heard of it through the grapevine, I don’t know if I was invited.
It was so haphazard that a true quality experience was not possible.
I am asking for a once a month luncheon (potluck?) in a suitable environ to accommodate the number of Native Americans to attend.
We consider ourselves Native American accordingly.
Thus we can truly meet each other, enjoy our Native humor together, maybe network and possibly develop the caring lifestyle we left at our own tribal home settings.
Respectfully,
Hoti’ hu ga
(Kenneth A. LeMieux)
Program Coordinator
Division of Workforce Development
1951 Constitution Ave. NW, MS-17-SIB
Washington, DC 20245
(Posted by the Moderator on behalf of Hoti' hu ga)
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6 votes
I disagreeIt would be useful to have regular benchmarking exercises performed on both commercial and open source GIS software on both the Windows and Linux 32-bit and 64-bit platforms. Such benchmarks would include serving up data via OGC web Services, http://www.opengeospatial.org/standards, such as WMS, WFS, WCS, SOS, etc. This exercise could be based on the techniques used at the 2009 FOSSG WMS Shootout. Also, desktop GIS ...more »
It would be useful to have regular benchmarking exercises performed on both commercial and open source GIS software on both the Windows and Linux 32-bit and 64-bit platforms. Such benchmarks would include serving up data via OGC web Services, http://www.opengeospatial.org/standards, such as WMS, WFS, WCS, SOS, etc. This exercise could be based on the techniques used at the 2009 FOSSG WMS Shootout.
Also, desktop GIS systems could be benchmarked on the processing of large data sets like a 400GB ASCII Lidar dataset, or merging and reprojecting 1 m NAIP data for an entire state.
The results of these benchmarks could be made publicly available, or if restrictions are placed on the publication of benchmark results by the software license, shared across the Department of Interior.
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5 votes
I disagreeI have received inquiries about the use of LinkedIn from bureau employees. When I looked into it I found that almost every Bureau and Service has a page on LinkedIn and frequently hundreds of employees are listed as members of LinkedIn. Yet there is no real policy that I have found. It seems that while we don't block the use of LinkedIn we refrain from any official approval. I suggest that LinkedIn could be used ...more »
I have received inquiries about the use of LinkedIn from bureau employees.
When I looked into it I found that almost every Bureau and Service has a
page on LinkedIn and frequently hundreds of employees are listed as members
of LinkedIn. Yet there is no real policy that I have found. It seems that
while we don't block the use of LinkedIn we refrain from any official
approval. I suggest that LinkedIn could be used as part of an open
government iniative.
Dwight Petersen
Washington Office
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9 votes
I disagreeI would like the DOI to undertake a study on the relationship between wild horses, invasive grasses like "cheatgrass", and wildfires, especially in the Western United States. Also, I would like the reports and conclusions of the study to be made available on the DOI website. I have submitted a number of ideas and comments regarding wild horses on our public lands. One of the issues that frequently come up in wild horse ...more »
I would like the DOI to undertake a study on the relationship between wild horses, invasive grasses like "cheatgrass", and wildfires, especially in the Western United States. Also, I would like the reports and conclusions of the study to be made available on the DOI website.
I have submitted a number of ideas and comments regarding wild horses on our public lands. One of the issues that frequently come up in wild horse discussion groups is the invasive plant commonly called "cheatgrass". As I understand it, this grass is extremely opportunistic. It grows in the early spring and then dies, providing dried ground fuel that helps spread wildfires.
There have been observations that wild horses feed on cheatgrass when it first emerges, before seed heads have a chance to develop and disperse. There have been professional firefighters who consider the absence of wild horses on areas where cheatgrass has taken hold actually increases wildfire danger.
I think this type of study could provide important information on mitigating the available fuels that contribute to the dangerous and destructive wildfires that ravage our lands, and might find our wild horses are more than icons of the West. They may be a natural, widely available, and economical fire brigade.
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-11 votes
I disagreeThere should be a way to delet old comments that are no longer active..if there is away I can not see where to delete on the page.
6 votes
I disagreeAt the field level, there is wide disparity in how federal staff complete their core work. For example, if you were to survey different parks, refuges, or forests on how they monitor, manage, and eradicate invasive plants, you would get a different answer most of the time from every unit. For this invasive plants example, a common framework focused on best practices for managing core work needs to be developed that includes ...more »
At the field level, there is wide disparity in how federal staff complete their core work. For example, if you were to survey different parks, refuges, or forests on how they monitor, manage, and eradicate invasive plants, you would get a different answer most of the time from every unit. For this invasive plants example, a common framework focused on best practices for managing core work needs to be developed that includes the full range of activities from field data collection & management, eradication methods, monitoring, analyses, mapping, etc. Include standard practices for making this data available to the public in easily digestable form. The solutions would center on SOP's, guidelines, standards, and policies that could be applied and used across agencies and would incorporate requirements of both the local level and central offices (WASO). So a new employee would be able to apply mobile data collection standards from one job to another resulting in lower costs and more consistency in data collection. This will lead to improved federal employee productivity and facilitate better science in decision-making.
We're developing lots of new data standards, but staff need additional context and solutions. Developing new national applications and repositories is only a small part of the solution. The need to analyze and develop best practices for important field programs applies to many different areas including law enforcement, facilities management, wildife management, and wilderness management. The data collection and management (including GIS) aspects of these programs are inconsistent and lame. The framework for improving business process needs to be consistent across programs with integration where appropriate. As an example, mapping solutions, most likely, would be consistent across most core field programs and usually would not be unique to one activity.
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23 votes
I disagreeAs someone who has worked frequently with USFWS personnel on endangered species issues, I have found that scientists that go against the accepted party line are often attacked by their superiors, particularly at the state supervisor and regional director levels. This has created an atmosphere of fear and intimidation-- and as a result many of the good scientists have left the USFWS to take jobs elsewhere. I have seen ...more »
As someone who has worked frequently with USFWS personnel on endangered species issues, I have found that scientists that go against the accepted party line are often attacked by their superiors, particularly at the state supervisor and regional director levels. This has created an atmosphere of fear and intimidation-- and as a result many of the good scientists have left the USFWS to take jobs elsewhere. I have seen a steady stream of bright people move through the state offices in New Mexico and Arizona, and then give up when their views were either attacked directly or were not acknowledged as having any value. USFWS scientists must be protected from political pressure from their supervisors, and when complaints (either formal or informal) are filed, they should not be ignored or swept under the rug as they usually are now.
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23 votes
I disagreeThe National Park Service has a web based NEPA public review tool/program called PEPC - Planning, Environment and Public Comment. This program is geared towards making all NPS NEPA Environmental Assessments (EA), and Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) available for public review and comment. All NPS units use PEPC as the tool to make plans and impact analyses available for public review and the public can then comment ...more »
The National Park Service has a web based NEPA public review tool/program called PEPC - Planning, Environment and Public Comment. This program is geared towards making all NPS NEPA Environmental Assessments (EA), and Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) available for public review and comment. All NPS units use PEPC as the tool to make plans and impact analyses available for public review and the public can then comment on the web at the site. Or they can write letters or email the park about the plan/NEPA document. All parks when issuing EAs/EISs for public review and comment should make the PEPC web site avialable, along with any other form of availability.
The DOI should evaluate this tool and ensure that all DOI agencies utilize this or a similar tool for public involvement related to NEPA documents.
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76 votes
I disagreeUnlike other federal departments such as the Department of Commerce, the Department of the Interior (DOI) currently lacks a strong policy governing how agency scientists and experts can interact with the public and the media. As a result, the ability of DOI scientists to speak freely about their research is not uniformly protected and varies from agency to agency within DOI. Placing data sets on the website only gets ...more »
Unlike other federal departments such as the Department of Commerce, the Department of the Interior (DOI) currently lacks a strong policy governing how agency scientists and experts can interact with the public and the media. As a result, the ability of DOI scientists to speak freely about their research is not uniformly protected and varies from agency to agency within DOI.
Placing data sets on the website only gets us part of the way to government transparency. The next big step will involve changing the culture of the department and allowing its experts to provide for context and interpretation of those data sets.
Therefore, in order to promote transparency and the free exchange of scientific ideas, the DOI should adopt a department-wide communications policy that protects the right of its employees to speak with the public and the media. Such "open" communications policies have already been adopted at places like NASA and NOAA and should pose no problems at the DOI.
Any such policy should incorporate the following principles:
•Scientists and researchers may freely express their personal views. All federal employees have a right to express their personal views outside of a few narrow restrictions (such as releasing classified or proprietary information), provided that he or she makes an explicit disclaimer that he or she is speaking as a private citizen and is not seeking to represent official agency policy. He or she should be allowed to speak freely about his or her research and to offer his or her scientific analysis--even in situations where the research may be controversial or have implications for government policy. Agency policies governing communication with the media should make this option clear and explicit to employees.
•A scientist or researcher has the right to review, amend, and comment publicly on the final version of any document or publication that significantly relies on his or her research, identifies him or her as an author or contributor, or purports to represent his or her scientific opinion. While editing by non-scientists is often necessary and useful, final review by scientific experts is essential to ensuring that accuracy has been maintained in the clearance process.
•Agency employees have clearly defined responsibilities in working with the media. Employees are responsible for the accuracy and integrity of their communications and should not represent the agency on issues of politics or policy without prior approval from the agency’s public affairs officer (PAO). Employees are also responsible for working with the PAO to make significant research developments accessible and comprehensible to the public.
•PAOs have clearly defined roles, such as responding promptly to media inquiries and providing journalists and agency staff with accurate information, but not acting as "gatekeepers" of information. Scientists and researchers should not be required to obtain pre-approval from the PAO before responding to a media request about their research. However, it is appropriate to require scientists and researchers to give the PAO prior notice of such interactions when possible, and to recap the interview afterward.
•Public affairs staff should have a plan for disseminating the media policy to agency scientists and researchers and should conduct trainings in effective media communication that emphasize scientific openness. The official agency media policy should be publicly available on the agency website.
Timothy Donaghy
Scientific Integrity Analyst
Union of Concerned Scientists
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0 votes
I disagreeHere's an idea concerning BLM's wild horse and burro program. Why not get congress to pass a national microchipping law for horses. All those individauls who own a horse have to get it micro-chipped and all those in the wild horse and burro program. That way they can be tracked with a digital profile that is located in the microchip. Very similar to the micro chips for dogs and cats. When the horse is bought or sold or ...more »
Here's an idea concerning BLM's wild horse and burro program. Why not get congress to pass a national microchipping law for horses. All those individauls who own a horse have to get it micro-chipped and all those in the wild horse and burro program. That way they can be tracked with a digital profile that is located in the microchip. Very similar to the micro chips for dogs and cats. When the horse is bought or sold or adopted the data would be updated. Add GPS and hook it up to Google Earth and the Public could "see" their "wild" horse or burro anytime on the web.
Then when they are abandoned by their owner or run away into the "wild" and end up in the herds of the West and are rounded up by the wild horse and burro program you can call the owners and tell them to come get their horse. If they refuse charge them for room and board of their animal.
This would help in several ways. 1) lost horses could be returned to owners; 2) BLM would know what tax payer to charge for taking care of the horse; and 3) That most of the "wild horses and burros" are not really wild, but abandoned or lost and thus stray animals.
Then there would be data concerning the origin of these horses and burros.
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12 votes
I disagreeWhat happened to asking the horse people and organizations and burro sanctuaries as to the correct way to handle these issues instead of contractors who kill the horses with cowboy tactics in helicopters.... what happened to birth control for the animals... what happened to the laws that gave these animals safety... what happened to not allowing the cattle industry to use our public lands and wetlands and drive out our ...more »
What happened to asking the horse people and organizations and burro sanctuaries as to the correct way to handle these issues instead of contractors who kill the horses with cowboy tactics in helicopters.... what happened to birth control for the animals... what happened to the laws that gave these animals safety... what happened to not allowing the cattle industry to use our public lands and wetlands and drive out our animals...
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16 votes
I disagreeThe 1,600 members of Open Source for America are dedicated to supporting and guiding federal efforts to make the US government more open through the use of open source software. We have established recommendations for all agencies to consider in their Open Government Plans, with these recommendations especially highlighting the need to remove barriers to the successful leveraging of open source software and open IT more ...more »
The 1,600 members of Open Source for America are dedicated to supporting and guiding federal efforts to make the US government more open through the use of open source software. We have established recommendations for all agencies to consider in their Open Government Plans, with these recommendations especially highlighting the need to remove barriers to the successful leveraging of open source software and open IT more generally. Open source software would seem to us to be the most concrete form of participation available to the government's constituents and its employees. These recommendations -- and the ability to comment further on them -- are at http://opensourceforamerica.org/guidelines.
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8 votes
I disagreeSo I've been looking at all the agency Open web interfaces for my job. I absolutely LOVE the DOI because it runs some of the coolest programs in the country! I think you guys should exploit this through cool widgets (perhaps featuring cool scientific findings) and multimedia galleries with images and videos of places like the National Parks (because we could all use a 3-minute vacation in the middle of the day!). Also, ...more »
So I've been looking at all the agency Open web interfaces for my job. I absolutely LOVE the DOI because it runs some of the coolest programs in the country! I think you guys should exploit this through cool widgets (perhaps featuring cool scientific findings) and multimedia galleries with images and videos of places like the National Parks (because we could all use a 3-minute vacation in the middle of the day!).
Also, I was going through the "valuable datasets" and I feel like an interactive map hyperlinking to data on the datasets would be helpful, especially on the volunteer opportunities dataset. That particular data set is difficult to follow. And plus, it will make it more accessible for people like me who prefer to search by region, versus job title. Also, a map of the regions in the wildfire datasets would be helpful for interpretation.
Not to be a copycat, but NASA's open website is really fun, as is the new climate web portal from NOAA. DOI has just as much exciting stuff to share with the world, and it would be really fun to get to access it easily.
Good job so far!
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24 votes
I disagreeI would like to suggest that there be a site where there are categories of issues that the American people are having and what the DOI is doing about them. This site could be one where people can click on an already listed issue or create one that is of concern to them that creates a new category. Then, similar to this site, people can vote as to if this is a concern for them, or not and the DOI should respond to these ...more »
I would like to suggest that there be a site where there are categories of issues that the American people are having and what the DOI is doing about them. This site could be one where people can click on an already listed issue or create one that is of concern to them that creates a new category. Then, similar to this site, people can vote as to if this is a concern for them, or not and the DOI should respond to these once they see where the American people are asking for the DOI to help, change, fix, or find a solution to whatever is of importance to the people. This should be backed up in some way to make sure the DOI is accountable for listening to the nation and responding honestly. I'm sure someone has a good way of setting up guidelines to make this happen...
It can also state what the DOI is dealing with, giving the American people an idea of what and how things are being handled, a non-polished version, but actual facts, via honest official reports, etc. Again, I'm sure someone has ideas as to how to go about doing this...
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45 votes
I disagree"Under Bush, the Interior Department became a lawless bureaucracy that actively worked to enrich the nation's most powerful energy interests. Top-level officials secretly allowed oil companies to keep billions in royalties owed to taxpayers, opened up 26 million acres of federal land to oil and gas drilling, denied wilderness protection to another 220 million acres, rewrote scientific reports to eliminate safeguards ...more »
"Under Bush, the Interior Department became a lawless bureaucracy that actively worked to enrich the nation's most powerful energy interests. Top-level officials secretly allowed oil companies to keep billions in royalties owed to taxpayers, opened up 26 million acres of federal land to oil and gas drilling, denied wilderness protection to another 220 million acres, rewrote scientific reports to eliminate safeguards for endangered species, and even snorted coke and had sex with the very oil interests they were supposed to be regulating. "It was Dodge City," says Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon who chairs the Senate Energy Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests."
-"Obama's Sheriff" by Tim Dickinson,
Featured in Rolling Stone Magazine in 2009
If the Department of the Interior wants to have any credibility when it comes to accountability and transparency, then they need to make publicly available all information relating to crimes that occurred, misconduct within the agency, and what is being done to fix what happened in the Department of the Interior from 2001-2008 under Gale Norton and Julie A. MacDonald.
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Social Web