Podcasts about civicactions

In this exciting episode of the Jobs in Tech Podcast, we sit down with Liz and Laura from CivicActions, a renowned tech company that specializes in building innovative solutions for civic engagement. We dive deep into their expertise and experience, exploring their unique perspectives on the intersection of technology and public service. Our conversation begins with an exploration of their backgrounds and how they found their way to CivicActions. Liz and Laura share their passion for using technology to drive positive change and their journey of joining a team that shares their values.  As the discussion unfolds, we ask them a series of thought-provoking questions that shed light on their work and insights: Throughout the episode, Liz and Laura share inspiring anecdotes, success stories, and lessons learned from their work at CivicActions. Their dedication to creating tech solutions that empower communities is evident as they articulate their vision for the future of civic engagement. Join us for this captivating conversation as we gain invaluable insights into the world of civic tech with Liz and Laura from CivicActions. Their passion for using technology as a force for positive change will leave listeners inspired and motivated to explore careers at the intersection of technology and public service. For more information and positions at CivicActions visit https://civicactions.com/careers/ For opportunities with TechBridge visit them at: https://techbridgeinc.com/job-board/

Guest Mike Gifford Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes Hello and welcome to Sustain Open Source Design! The podcast where we talk about sustaining open source with design. Learn how we, as designers, interface with open source in a sustainable way, how we integrate into different communities, and how we as coders, work with other designers. Today, Richard is super excited to have as his guest, Mike Gifford, who's a Senior Strategist at CivicActions and a thought leader on digital accessibility and the public sector. He was the Founder and President of OpenConcept Consulting, which worked extensively with Drupal, and he became a Drupal 8 Core Accessibility Maintainer in 2012. As a long-term environmentalist, Mike has found ways to integrate his passions for the web and planet. Today, Mike talks about his views on sustainability, his work with open source software, and the importance of accessibility and multilingualism in technology. Download this episode now to hear more! [00:02:18] Mike shares his views on sustainability, and he tells us he's been working fully with CivicActions for the last two years after closing OpenConcept Consulting. [00:04:18] We learn about CivicActions, a web development firm that does a lot of work with both open source and Drupal, as well as HCD. They primarily work in the government space, largely focused on the US government. [00:05:15] Mike tells us about the Canadian Open Source Advisory Board that he runs. [00:06:21] We find out the differences between the Canadian and US government's approach to open source software. [00:08:13] How does Mike see himself as a designer in all these conversations? He talks about the work he does with the Drupal community to make Drupal more accessible. [00:09:35] Mike explains where oral design interfaces mix with open source and he mentions Preston So from the Drupal community, who wrote the book, Voice Content and Usability. [00:11:11] We hear about the groups of people who are looking at accessibility. [00:13:38] There's some great tools that are useful when talking about the disability spectrum, such as Accessibility Insights, which is a Microsoft tool, and an accessibility engine called, axe, which was built by Deque. [00:15:41] Mike talks about the multilingual accessibility being a challenge in technology, and the challenges of identifying language content and tools, especially in open source software, and the predominance of English in accessibility resources. [00:18:02] We hear about the open source work Mike's doing with CivicActions, a project he was involved in creating called, OpenACR, and the need for procurement to include accessibility requirements. [00:20:52] He highlights the responsibility of open source maintainers to set an example of accessibility best practices. [00:22:39] How does Mike think ChatGPT is going influence accessibility practices? He emphasizes the responsibility of humans to evaluate and implement accessible code. [00:26:00] Richard and Mike discuss the importance of building accessibility into the workflow of teams and developers. Accessibility is not just for those with disabilities but for everyone since abilities can impact all of us at one point. [00:30:58] Mike tells us where you can find him on the web. Quotes [00:02:33] “Sustainability is a word that is too loose and can be applied to many things much like accessibility.” [00:13:51] “It's about trying to remember that this is about progress, not perfection.” [00:21:07] “I think there's a huge responsibility for open source maintainers to set an example.” [00:21:35] “If you provide examples in your code that aren't following accessibility best practices, then you're propagating that.” [00:29:16] “Accessibility doesn't just affect a small number of people; it affects all of us at one point or another because we're human.” Spotlight [00:31:43] Richard's spotlight is his neighbor, Susan Reid, and The Kitchen Table Poems that she writes. [00:32:23] Mike's spotlight is CO2.js, a project from The Green Web Foundation. Links Open Source Design Twitter (https://twitter.com/opensrcdesign) Open Source Design (https://opensourcedesign.net/) Sustain Design & UX working group (https://discourse.sustainoss.org/t/design-ux-working-group/348) SustainOSS Discourse (https://discourse.sustainoss.org/) Sustain Open Source Twitter (https://twitter.com/sustainoss?lang=en) Richard Littauer Mastodon (https://mastodon.social/@richlitt) Richard Littauer Twitter (https://twitter.com/richlitt?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor) Mike Gifford LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/mgifford/) Mike Gifford Twitter (https://twitter.com/mgifford) Mike Gifford Mastodon (https://mastodon.social/@mgifford) CivicActions Accessibility (https://civicactions.com/) CivicActions (https://civicactions.com/) Preston So (Books) (https://preston.so/) Accessibility Insights (https://accessibilityinsights.io/) OpenACR (https://github.com/GSA/openacr) Axe tools-Deque (https://www.deque.com/axe/) The Kitchen Table Poems by Susan Reid (https://tinyletter.com/poems-tunes) The Green Web Foundation-CO2.js (https://github.com/thegreenwebfoundation/co2.js/) Credits Produced by Richard Littauer (https://www.burntfen.com/) Edited by Paul M. Bahr at Peachtree Sound (https://www.peachtreesound.com/) Show notes by DeAnn Bahr Peachtree Sound (https://www.peachtreesound.com/) Special Guest: Mike Gifford.

Unlike in the private sector, governments don't choose their users. That's why even more important in the public sector to make sure that technology and digital transformation efforts work for everyone. It doesn't matter how innovative or efficient digital technology can be for public institutions if the implementation of those actively exclude people from accessing and benefiting from public services and assets. That's why principles like accessibility, sustainability and openness are so important when we think about digital transformation.Joining Ryan to talk about this is Mike Gifford, an Associate with Think Digital, and a Senior Strategist at CivicActions, a technology consultancy that helps government deliver better public services through modern technology and design.Watch the Video Version of the Episodehttps://youtu.be/rmO5T7zQtU4

Technology is a crucial component to living in today's society, and Liz Tupper joins the show to explain why technologists like herself hold a powerful responsibility to build technology accessible to everyone. She shares how even the most well-intended software often leaves people out, what challenges come with not thinking about accessibility from the beginning, and how her career path led to the creme de la creme of impact work. **SHOW LINKS** Full show notes at https://constantvariables.co  Liz Tupper on LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethtupper/  Email Liz at liz.tupper@civicactions.com  CivicActions website | https://civicactions.com/   Amplify website | https://www.amplify100.com/  Mobile Developer Shorts newsletter | https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/6998359398859374592/  Michael Roth on LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-roth-508772183/  Follow The Jed Mahonis Group on LinkedIn | https://linkedin.com/company/the-jed-mahonis-group 

Today's episode discusses how Drupal is still alive in today's generation and it will help us understand why we should go to Drupal and what makes Drupal  standout from the other CMS that are coming out today. “What sets Drupal apart from all the others, it's built for authors to have something in-place that allows non-technical people to work on creating content and managing content together, that's something different than most new CMS that are coming out.” Brad Anderson, CEO of TechBridge, a Salt Lake City IT staffing company, and Bobby Glen James, Author, Speaker, and founder of BoTecha IT Support, along with guest speaker Mike Gifford, Senior Strategic at CivicActions, hear these tech experts talk about how CivicActions is using technology as a disruptor of the Industry in this week's episode of The New IT Podcast. For more information on IT staffing and recruiting in Salt Lake City, visit: https://techbridgeinc.com/

IT modernization funding in fiscal year 2022 Laura Criste, Federal Market Analyst for Bloomberg Government, discusses what to expect for IT modernization funding based on the “skinny budget” request The president’s budget request and defense spending Frederico Bartels, Senior Policy Analyst for Defense Budgeting at The Heritage Foundation, discusses the possibility of running out of resources in the defense budget Locality pay and the future of remote work John O’Duinn, Senior Strategist at CivicActions, discusses questions the pandemic has brought up surrounding geographic location of employees in relation to their offices

Deploying hypersonic capabilities in the Army Frank Kendall, Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, discusses the Army’s first hypersonic missile flight test expected to happen toward the end of the fiscal year Acquisition challenges and the Great Power Competition Caroline Baxter, Research Fellow at the Eurasia Group Foundation, discusses procurement problems underlying the Army’s slow response in deploying face masks for troops Rethinking the process of attaining ATOs Mary Lazzeri, Director of Federal Strategy at CivicActions, goes over steps she proposes in her piece on rethinking the system for obtaining an Authority to Operate

NAPA report says Office of Space Commerce should regulate traffic in space Sean O’Keefe, Former Administrator of NASA, explains why the Office of Space Commerce should have the authority to regulate space traffic to respond to the accelerating number of satellites in space New assessment of the Chinese military Roger Zakheim, Director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Foundation & Institute, discusses the Defense Department’s new annual assessment of the Chinese military and the importance of keeping pace with China Benefits of long-term remote work Grace McKinney, Head of Talent and Hiring at CivicActions, and John O’Duinn, Senior Strategist at CivicActions, discuss considerations for the future of remote work in the government

As the Chief Experience Officer and co-founder of CivicActions, Aaron is dedicated to creating and supporting a culture of excellence, compassion, and authenticity. A longtime friend of mine, Aaron and I have intersected throughout many different points of our lives and careers. In this episode, we talk about how he blended his experience in the worlds of personal growth, tech, politics, and business to create CivicActions with Henry Poole. We also discuss the differences he witnessed in going from partnering with client in the nonprofit world to government.  And, we talk about his time working in the White House with the U.S. Digital Service. Aaron sees the importance of organizational culture as a transformative agent and knows that the more we work together, the stronger we become.   Key Takeaways: [6:18] Aaron has had a deep interest in personal growth for quite some time. He is passionate about using his skills in communication to foster healthy relationships and help others realize and accomplish their goals. [7:13] San Francisco has been a part of Aaron’s family for many years and also a large part of his background in tech and ability to see what’s on the forefront of the modern digital era. [8:12] Aaron co-founded CivicActions in 2004, with technologist Henry Poole whom he appreciates for his brilliant tech and business acumen. As the Chief Experience Officer, he is responsible for company culture and professional development. [10:14] Just a few of CivicActions clients include Departments of Agriculture, Education, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Justice & Veterans Affairs, Executive Office of the President, Federal Communications Commission, House of Representatives, Smithsonian National Museum, and California DMV. They had two tracks: to build a public infrastructure with content management systems that fostered openness and to empower the constituents in a network. [16:41] Aaron and I both saw Barack Obama speak, and wondered if one day he could possibly run for President. [17:31] Great leaders recognize that the people we meet can be helpful to us and we can be helpful to them, at many stages along our careers. As you transition through your career and grow, it’s important to build a network of others that you respect and admire. [20:43] Aaron and Henry took a look at what they thought was the most needed and it was clear — to raise the consciousness of the world and connect us with the impact our actions have on our earth and each other. They chose the vehicle to be the government and took a strong interest in modernizing the government and creating a more open and transparent space. [27:13] CivicActions is a fully distributed team, and everyone works out of their home office. Aaron and his family live in Costa Rica and he is able to make a great living while working remotely. [33:20] Aaron gives us the inside look at working in the White House during the Obama administration. He was brought on to work in the United States Digital Team and worked to help them spread the word and principles for creating a culture of inclusiveness and productivity. [45:38] Despite the craziness in the White House today, Aaron sees firsthand the amount of talented and dedicated public servants still there. Resources: Purchase Bring Your Whole Self to Work and gain access to bonus material Mike Robbins Website Mike Robbins Podcast Mike Robbins on Facebook Mike Robbins on Twitter Mike Robbins on Instagram TED Radio Hour CivicActions Aaron Pava LinkedIn Henry Poole Wisdom Course Green Wisdom: A Guide for Anyone to Start, Engage and Energize a Sustainability Team, by Nikki Pava  

Direct .mp3 file download. Stefanie Gray, (stefaniegray), Engineer and Open Data Specialist for CivicActions joins Mike Anello to discuss all things DKAN. Interview SimCity 2000 Minecraft Common Cause New York Scrappy Doo Leslie Knope David Hasselhoff Wuppertal Suspension Railway Sicilian Anti-Mafia DKAN site DKAN Slack network Stefanie's Florida DrupalCamp presentation DKAN home See list of features on this site. Download DKAN from GitHub DrupalEasy News "Upgrading yoru local development environment with DDEV" full-day training at Drupal Camp Asheville (Friday, July 13, 2018) and Drupal Camp Colorado (Friday, August 3, 2018). News Drupal Association Board of Directors Community position election - candidates Sponsors Drupal Aid - Drupal support and maintenance services. Get unlimited support, monthly maintenance, and unlimited small jobs starting at $99/mo. WebEnabled.com - devPanel. Follow us on Twitter @drupaleasy @andrewmriley @liberatr @ultimike @tedbow @sixmiletech @akalata @getdkan Subscribe Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes, Google Play or Miro. Listen to our podcast on Stitcher. If you'd like to leave us a voicemail, call 321-396-2340. Please keep in mind that we might play your voicemail during one of our future podcasts. Feel free to call in with suggestions, rants, questions, or corrections. If you'd rather just send us an email, please use our contact page.

Sadie Honey and Aaron Pava will share how CivicActions, a 20-person firm, has built a culture of safety and trust, specifically addressing ways to overcome conflict avoidance and knowledge silos, both which can undermine distributed teams. They’ll provide specific techniques any team can use to deepen relationships and increase flow, along with advice for experimenting with new tools on an established team.