News Release: W3C, WSRI To Explore Transparency, Effectiveness in eGovernment

W3C, WSRI Workshop To Explore Transparency, Effectiveness in eGovernment

Web Standards Community, Government Experts Share Goals for Effective  
Web Use

Contact Americas, Australia --
     Janet Daly, <janet@w3.org>, +1.617.253.5884 or +1.617.253.2613
Contact Europe, Africa and the Middle East-
     Marie-Claire Forgue, <mcf@w3.org>, +33.492.38.75.94
Contact Asia --
     Yasuyuki Hirakawa, <chibao@w3.org>, +81.466.49.1170

Web Resources

	This press release
	http://www.w3.org/2007/05/egovpressrelease

	Call for papers for W3C/WSRI eGov Workshop, deadline is 22 May
	http://www.w3.org/2007/eGov/eGov-policy-cfp

	Results of W3C European eGovernment Symposium
	http://www.w3.org/2007/eGov/symposium-spain-report#follow-up


http://www.w3.org/ -- 15 May 2007 -- Web standards and research  
leaders are looking for input from government experts on how the Web  
currently works for them, and what efforts would make it a more  
effective tool for achieving their goals, both in terms of greater  
access to and transparency of information and new approaches to  
citizen services. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), in co- 
ordination with the Web Science Research Initiative (WSRI), has  
issued a call for papers for "Toward More Transparent Government -  
Workshop on eGovernment and the Web". The workshop will be held in  
Washington, DC, USA, on 18-19 June 2007. Deadline for paper  
submissions is Tuesday 22 May 2007.

The Internet and Web Change the Interface of Government

Internet-connected computers and the World Wide Web are  
revolutionizing the ways in which citizens and governments relate.  
Citizens can use an increasing number of services (e.g. apply for a  
driving license, ask for a tax return) and have easier access to  
information of public interest including legislation and regulatory  
information, basic data generated about the operation of government,  
public policy debates, as well as the basic information about public  
resources such as geospatial data. But there are many open questions  
to be explored in order to better understand the unique dynamics of  
government information on the Web:

     * What new dynamics of information services and web publishing  
marketplace should governments consider in setting eGovernment strategy?
     * How can governments leverage open standards (Web protocols,  
data formats, etc.) to achieve public sector information goals and  
better interoperability?
     * What are the long-range information policy goals that remain  
unmet by current eGovernment strategies?
     * Are there any significant differences between Web services  
created in commercial or other non-governmental environments, and  
those designed specifically for government application?
     * If so, what can we learn from these differences about the  
unique requirements of eGovernment services?

These issues have been explored in W3C's European eGovernment  
Symposium, held in Gijón, Spain, earlier this year. The initial  
findings provided points for serious discussion and suggestions for  
future work; it's hoped that this workshop will reveal common issues  
shared by European and US government agencies, as well as identify  
unique challenges.

The jointly sponsored workshop will bring together government  
officials, computer scientists and other academics specializing in  
both technical and legal eGovernment issues, leaders in the Web  
standards community, as well as a wide range of companies providing  
products and services in the government marketplace. It is chaired by  
Ari Schwartz, Deputy Director of the Center for Democracy and  
Technology; Nigel Shadbolt, Professor of Artificial Intelligence at  
the University of Southampton, and Daniel Weitzner, Technology and  
Society Policy Director for W3C and Principal Research Scientist at  
MIT CSAIL Decentralized Information Group.

Prominent Speakers to Share Challenges and Success Stories on Data  
Integration

The developing agenda already includes experts in Web technology as  
well as data integration and policy development. Confirmed  
participants include Tim Berners-Lee, W3C Director and Senior  
Research Scientist at MIT CSAIL Decentralized Information Group;  
Vanessa Lawrence, Director General and CEO, Ordnance Survey, UK; and  
Carol Tullo from the Office of Public Sector Information, UK.

Deadline for Papers Extended to 22 May

Registration for the workshop is now open; as space is limited,  
interested parties should register as soon as possible. The Workshop  
Program Committee continues to receive and review papers until 22  
May; those interested in more details may review the Call for  
Participation.

About the World Wide Web Consortium [W3C]

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is an international consortium  
where Member organizations, a full-time staff, and the public work  
together to develop Web standards. W3C primarily pursues its mission  
through the creation of Web standards and guidelines designed to  
ensure long-term growth for the Web. Over 400 organizations are  
Members of the Consortium. W3C is jointly run by the MIT Computer  
Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (MIT CSAIL) in the  
USA, the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics  
(ERCIM) headquartered in France and Keio University in Japan,and has  
additional Offices worldwide. For more information see http:// 
www.w3.org/

About the Web Science Research Initiative [WSRI]

The Web Science Research Initiative (WSRI) is a joint endeavour  
between the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory  
(CSAIL) at MIT and the School of Electronics and Computer Science  
(ECS) at the University of Southampton. Its goal is to facilitate and  
produce the fundamental scientific advances necessary to inform the  
future design and use of the World Wide Web. WSRI provides a global  
forum for scientists and scholars to collaborate on the first  
multidisciplinary scientific research effort specifically designed to  
study the Web at all scales of size and complexity, and to develop a  
new discipline of Web science for future generations of researchers.  
For more information, see http://webscience.org/

Received on Tuesday, 15 May 2007 13:49:06 UTC