g0v, Founded Because of an Advertisement
The origin of g0v actually stems from the Economic Vitality Promotion Plan (the most ridiculous advertisement in history).
This group of passionate engineers decided to form g0v, dedicated to promoting government openness and advocating for it through the internet.
g0v gained popularity starting from the 318 Movement. The introduction of hackfold's collaborative data folder and live streaming tools allowed the public to have a better understanding...
Among the 700+ participants, about 10% were government officials, including the soon-to-be-departing Chang Shan-cheng, who came to share the process of promoting government open data.
"The idea is to dream big and believe that one day others will see it and it will become your own story." This is probably the biggest sentiment one can experience by participating in g0v.
It's a pity that Fang Xin couldn't attend, but g0v provides live streaming and conference notes, so you can still satisfy your curiosity by watching the recordings and reading the notes.
TL;DR
No one would have expected that the zero-time government, which now has over 500 citizen hackers spread across three continents, was born because of the Taiwanese government's ineffective advertisement. The engineers in this hacker community not only know how to code but also have good English skills. They are interested in the impact of citizen technology on governments worldwide. In 2014, Gao Jialiang spent two months visiting cities around the world, exchanging ideas with open organizations and communities, absorbing local experiences, and sharing them with the community in Taiwan. Thus, these programmers, who were supposed to live ordinary lives, stepped into the field of citizen technology due to their passion for reshaping society.
For the first participation in the g0v summit, I heard (and chatted with participants) that this year's theme of "deconstruction and reconstruction" broadened the scope. Previous topics were more technical, attracting mostly engineers. This time, there were not only attendees and speakers from various countries but also nearly 10% of the participants were government officials.
You will find that g0v does not hold a specific position but rather serves as an intermediary to record events. Whether it's live streaming or their open-source tools, the same principle applies. If you have time, you can watch the live stream or read the conference notes. If you can't spare the time, you can take a look at my notes!
Notes
From .org to .ngo
The speaker is an engineer from an NGO who shared many challenges they face in their development work.
The speaker mentioned that the Environmental Information Association currently faces the following challenges:
- From 2000 to 2016, issues related to the environment were not covered by the media, at most appearing in lifestyle sections. As the times began to change, tools needed to be adapted.
- Code refactoring: The product has been a legacy system since its launch, and usually, there is no time for refactoring in the early stages. Refactoring only begins after stability is achieved, and external engineers were also brought in at that time.
- When nobody becomes somebody: Faced with increasing problems
- People: With the organization, people, supervisors, and salaries, management becomes difficult.
- Generational shift: New people constantly rotating, the older generation has no time to discuss ideals, resulting in communication problems.
- Beneficiaries: When nobody becomes a beneficiary, do we still remember our original intentions?
Finally, the speaker summarized the role played by NGOs:
- A platform that gathers information and power.
- Proxy: Acting on behalf of the government to respond quickly to issues.
- Agent: A citizen's representative.
Conclusion: Companies, apart from the state, are the most important organizations that have the most impact on everyone.
Democracy and Citizen Participation in Open Media
The speaker is the founder of VOXE. The concept of VOXE is similar to Taiwan's Legislator Voting Guide. 46% of US voters did not vote in the presidential election. In the 2014 European Parliament election, 70% of young people did not vote, and many people thought it didn't matter. Many people believe that elected officials do not care about public opinion, so they simply choose not to vote. Therefore, the speaker hopes to improve this through tools and established this platform.
One question that left a deep impression was, "How do we get everyone to take action? This is the most difficult part." The speaker's answer was through the use of tools. After all, ordinary people cannot protest or review political platforms all day long, as they have to take care of their families, work, and other responsibilities. Therefore, the tools must be simple enough to stimulate others to use them.
Someone also asked how they would raise funds, and the speaker responded that Google gave them 200,000 euros. No need to worry at all!
Conclusion: Tools are meant to solve problems.
Real-Time Earthquake Warning System
These days, everyone should have received earthquake forecast messages. The speaker began by describing the actual experience of the 921 earthquake, reminding everyone of the importance of earthquake preparedness. Let's start with some earthquake knowledge. Wiki
P-waves travel the fastest, at a speed of 28,000 miles per hour. Earthquake forecasting is based on this principle. When the P-wave arrives, it is followed by the S-wave, and after that comes the most dangerous surface wave.
In other words, when the P-wave arrives, the actions taken when the surface wave arrives are crucial.
Today, if we receive such a message, what should we do?
- Confirm whether you can run outside within 30 seconds.
- If you cannot run away in 30 seconds, you need to know the safest place inside the house.
- Do not hesitate, as within 30 seconds, you may disappear from this world.
In some earthquake-prone areas, it is possible to receive the message only after the earthquake has occurred. According to statistics from the Great Hanshin earthquake in Osaka, Japan, 70% of the victims saved themselves, 20% relied on family and friends, and only 10% relied on official assistance. This shows that the Japanese take disaster prevention seriously.
Bonus
Beautiful Tokyo Disaster Prevention Handbook
Are we mentally prepared, and do we have corresponding preventive measures in place? The speaker believes that the foundation will be part of the solution.
Conclusion: Disaster prevention starts with ourselves.
My Days as an Undercover in the News Industry
The speaker is Kirby, the founder of 0media.tw.
Strange! Female Teacher Climbs the Mountain for the Second Time Later investigations revealed that this female teacher didn't even have a boyfriend. The news was full of inaccuracies, and the overall quality of media reports was low. Therefore, the decision was made to start 0media.tw and provide visualization tools to help journalists have data to reference in their reports. The tools should also be user-friendly for non-technical people.
Currently, useful data collection tools include:
- Open Refine
- Spreadsheet
- p5.js
- Kimono
The speaker also shared several real-life cases:
- Ice Bucket Challenge: It was found that during the weeks when the Ice Bucket Challenge was popular, it accounted for 70% of the total donations.
- ER Life
The following observations were made:
- Do data journalists need to know how to code? The cost of entry might be too high.
- It's challenging to find someone who can design, write articles, interview, and have technical skills all at once.
- Articles on news websites lack refinement.
- Open-source tools may no longer be maintained.
- Services may be terminated.
Therefore, the speaker hopes that piotDB can help journalists and provide better options for data collection and visualization in the future.
Instant Buy, Instant Return Map
After listening to the speaker's sharing, it can be seen that this seemingly impromptu instant buying and returning event was actually well-calculated. In the end, the initiator of the event even went on stage to share their experience.
Because the instant return initiator had already studied Costco's business structure in advance, a 100% satisfaction guarantee became a commitment between the buyer and seller. For Costco, this event achieved the desired publicity effect, while for users, it fulfilled the condition of a satisfying purchase. Both parties benefited, and Costco had no reason to refuse.
Let's start with the conclusion:
- In 2015, revenue decreased by 1.5 billion, with a net loss of 1.9 billion. (Total assets of 2.5 trillion, accounting for one-sixth of Taiwan)
Directly overthrowing the big boss at Ting Hsin is quite difficult, so they started with the smaller targets first. The power of the people is dispersed, and the instant return map shortens the time for long-term resistance. The first challenge of instant return is a controversial issue, and the second challenge is the action itself (having to go to the destination in person and endure the gaze of the public and store clerks). The instant return map visualizes the situation, allowing data to be organized and future goals to be planned. It requires someone to maintain the system, promote it, and collect login data (challenges related to the system itself).
However, as a normal citizen, there are so many things to do. Who has the time to buy and return instantly every day? Today, Lin Fengying's special sale, I went to enjoy a little happiness.
What Does It Feel Like to Grow Up
Let's take a look at how the Japanese managed to bankrupt Snow Brand link.
From a community perspective:
- Most of the discussions on PTT are in favor, with occasional criticism.
- Dcard is full of criticism. Many articles against instant buying and returning appear.
- Facebook occasionally shows dynamics against instant buying and returning.
Setting aside the moral debate about this event (the speaker said they only focused on solutions).
Regardless of whether this event itself is right or wrong, it has indirectly attracted attention and stimulated reflection. People are discussing, seeking answers, and engaging in open collaboration.
Instant Buy, Instant Return Map
Conclusion: While Ting Hsin can buy anything, they cannot buy the conscience and indignation of citizen action.
From g0v to gov - Infiltrating the Ministry of Health and Welfare for 400 Days
This was a touching talk, "Infiltrating the Ministry of Health and Welfare for 400 Days." It was the best presentation I heard today.
Public Policy Online Participation Platform
This platform follows the mechanisms of the United States and the United Kingdom. If a petition receives more than 5,000 signatures, the government must respond within 2 months.
The speaker, after transitioning from g0v to gov, began to reflect on the introduction of collaboration tools. They also started to question whether it is difficult for the government to address public demands. The speaker provided a detailed account of the process from a citizen proposal to legislative amendment, highlighting the discrepancies between community participants and the government's perspective. It can be observed that government officials are willing to take action. In this particular case, the government responded and promised to amend the law, but unfortunately, the proposer passed away before the law was announced, and the amendment did not assist the proposer during their lifetime.
After listening to the presentation, I remember the applause lasting for about thirty seconds! Although it's a pity that the proposer was not helped in the end, I believe their sharing indirectly influenced many people's views on the government.
It is indeed challenging for the government to address public demands.
Openness comes at a cost.
Engineers should avoid single points of failure, and civil servants should avoid single points of success.
Non-Open, Non-Transparent Party Assets
Before elections, we often see charts related to the assets of the Kuomintang (KMT) party.
The speaker jokingly mentioned having an address and creating a map to show KMT's land in Taipei and large areas in Baihe, Tainan. One can see that KMT owns a lot of land in these areas! Upon checking the street view, it's filled with betel nut and banana trees. Maybe in the future, they will create a KMT party assets tourism app.
In Taiwan, due to the lack of a party law, there are no specific restrictions on the source of party assets. This has resulted in the KMT selflessly accepting land and revenue confiscated by the government at that time.
- KMT: 22.5 billion
- DPP: 400 million
- Others: 19 million
Such a huge disparity makes it difficult for small parties to survive, as they are already at a disadvantage just by advertising.
- Issues with openness
- Preservation and restoration of historical archives
- Information integrity
KMT Party Assets Declassification Gitbook
Conclusion: Taiwan won't improve unless the KMT is removed.
Unconference
During the unconference, participants were encouraged to initiate their own ideas, and the next morning, they discussed their ideas with each other in the lounge.
Time was limited, so I only listened to some topics that interested me:
Transitional Justice
How to lower the threshold for discussion and attract the general public's attention to the topic. Usually, besides the families and friends of the victims of the 228 Incident, the general public is less interested. This is because Taiwan's history education downplays the 228 Incident, and most people have not experienced it.
- Historians on Instagram
- 228 Incident Map
- Transitional Justice Game
- Building public interest in the issue
Combating Capitalism through the Sharing Economy
Discussing everyone's imagination of the sharing economy.
- Venus Project
- Japanese symbiotic housing
- Uber and Airbnb represent both sharing and capitalism. It's impossible to fight against oneself. Another book, "The Zero Marginal Cost Society," can provide a better understanding. Sharing belonging to the middle class is not the ideal form of sharing.
- It can only be destroyed from within; it cannot be conquered from the outside. When the marginal cost reaches zero, capitalism will no longer continue that activity, and it will become a sharing economy.
Wrapping Up
I spent 1200 to attend the conference, and it wouldn't be good if I didn't do anything. So I wrote down my thoughts and notes to satisfy Fang Xin's curiosity and also to give an account to the company (?).
I really learned a lot! The lunchboxes were delicious and environmentally friendly, but the eco-friendly chopsticks they sold cost 300 for a pair! I couldn't bring myself to buy them, just like a fisherman!
This time, there were unconference sessions and interactive games with participants (collecting cups) to exchange prizes. I feel that future gatherings will focus more on the participants themselves.
