Month: February 2011

Social Media Week: February 7 – 11

We’re always excited when Social Media Week rolls around in New York City, and this year, it’s expanded to more cities around the globe, including San Francisco, Rome, Paris, Toronto, Sao Paulo, London, Hong Kong, and Istanbul. The conference was established to recognize and celebrate developments in collaborative and mobile media, and the innovators behind them. Yesterday, Social Media Week held its opening ceremony and press conference in New York, where Deputy Mayor Stephen Goldsmith offered a keynote address on how the City is leveraging digital media to improve the way it does business and meet the needs of its many customers.

Over the course of next week there will be over 150 events across the City, many of which have free registration. This year, we are especially looking forward to hosting our first City-sponsored panel (see our first pick below!). To help you navigate the week, here are some other events that caught our eye. Click on the title to register and read more.

1. Open Government and the Transformation of New York City’s Digital Environment
   When: Friday, February 11 at 9:00 AM
   Where: Paley Center for Media

   Panelists:
   • Seth W. Pinsky, NYCEDC President
   • Carole Post, Dept. of Information Technology and Telecommunications Commissioner
   • Rachel Sterne, New York City Chief Digital Officer 

   The event will serve as an introduction to Rachel Sterne, the City’s new Chief Digital Officer who will talk about the City’s vision for the role and how she will use social media to engage the City’s residents and visitors. NYCEDC President Pinsky and DoITT Commissioner Post will discuss recently launched programs targeted at engaging New Yorkers through social media channels. 

2. Citizen 2.0 – Social Media and the Future of Participatory Government
   When: Monday, February 7 from Noon to 2:00 PM
   Where: Paley Center for Media

   Hosted by Reboot, discuss what it will take to bake the principles of social media deeply inside the process of government service delivery and policy-making.

3. Inaugural GovGeeks & Drinks
   When: Monday, February 7 from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM
   Where: New Work City

   The Open NY Forum is starting a monthly social for NYC’s (that’s NY State and NYC area) GovGeeks! This night is for GovGeeks of all stripes to take off their “hats” and hang out with other GovGeeks.

160 Varick Street Incubator, one of our City-sponsored incubators, is also hosting an event. See the whole Social Media Week NYC schedule, and act quickly as events are filling up!