Technology is culture is engagement: ePower session event on OGD

On 4 December, the parliamentary group “ePower” organised a session event on the subject of Open Government Data. At the Casino Bern, a dozen each of politicians, representatives of public authorities, and of companies and associations came together – a high-calibre mix that could easily have filled an episode of “SF Arena”. André Golliez and Hannes Gassert of Opendata.ch each gave a 15-minute talk. What they reported left few people cold.

Hannes Gassert spoke about “Make” and put his talk under the motto “Technology is culture”. Open Government Data is not primarily a technological challenge, but rather requires a commitment to new, partnership-based engagement between public authorities and private actors. The demand is simple: authorities that collect data should make it public, freely available and usable for everyone. This reuse of data opens up immense potential for Switzerland for more transparency, innovation and efficiency. More on this can be found in the Opendata.ch Manifesto.

Laboratories of civic participation

Gassert showed the applications and visualisations that have emerged at the four make.opendata.ch Hackdays held so far alone, using data that are already public and freely available today. More on the first Swiss make.opendata.ch Hackday in autumn 2011, the first City of Bern Open Data Camp (spring 2012) and the thematic make.opendata Hackdays “Mobility” (spring 2012) and “Health” (autumn 2012) can be found via the links.

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The next Hackdays will take place from 22 to 23 March 2013 simultaneously in Bern and Sierre – this time on the theme of “Money”.

Together for a data policy

André Golliez spoke about the barriers that Open Government Data still has to overcome in Switzerland – which is at the same time a list of starting points for a national data policy. According to Golliez, in addition to the creation of a uniform Swiss data licence and a great deal of communication work, a common catalogue is needed that massively simplifies access across departments, at least at federal level. Beyond that, it is necessary not only to open further key datasets such as procurement data, but also to create the framework conditions that allow fees to be reduced in favour of economic added value.

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Lively discussion across disciplines and party lines

The subsequent panel on open data in healthcare, as well as the public debate that followed, were lively. Various Open Data ideas emerged on the spot, and their pros and cons were weighed straight away. If quality assurance of data and apps is ensured, and if the continued high-quality collection of new data is not neglected, then great progress and significant innovation can still be expected in terms of “Open Data the Swiss way” – such was one conclusion from the ranks of the parliamentarians present. Opendata.ch clearly agrees with this conclusion – and will take further steps in the coming months to move closer to this goal.