Digital Democracy Tools Shared in Iraq

For the next installment of our pre-GOSCON interview series, we took some time to speak with Noel "noneck" Hidalgo. Mr. Hidalgo is the Director of Technology Innovation for the New York State Senate. Noel is currently working to update the New York State Senate's technology infrastructure and helping the public understand the power of an open, transparent, and efficient legislature though NYSenate.gov. Mr. Hidalgo has spent several years exploring the interaction between innovative technologies, the public's interaction with government, and community building activities.

We first learned about Noel's trip to Iraq before his departure, when he asked if he could download the GOSCON archives to carry with him into the country. You can hear Noel, along with New York State Senate Chief Information Officer Andrew Hoppin, speak on "How to Root Your Agency," at 1:30 PM on Wednesday, October 27th.

Mr. Hidalgo, we hear that you recently traveled to Iraq. What prompted your journey there?

Two weeks ago, I was invited as a keynote speaker and trainer for IREX's Iraq E Media conference in Erbil, Iraq. Though my work at the New York State Senate and my work as an advisor to Digital Democracy, a New York City based NGO, Irex thought I was one of the few U.S. Government officials that could best represent the changing face of democracy.

Can you share any details of your visit? Who did you talk to during your travels?

I was really excited to be meeting National and Regional Government officials, Iraqi NGOs, Civil Society members and business owners who focus on information and communication technologies (ICT). While there I was promised an exclusive opportunity to meet with owners and representatives of the wireless industry and the Iraq's Central Government CIOs. Additionally, I was excited to meet the social entrepreneurs, regional government staffers and NGOs who are using ICT to challenge the sectarian violence and make a new Iraq.

While it was a short trip, three days, IREX ensure those of us who were traveling to Iraq for the first time got a real taste Kurdish governed Iraq. From the Citadel in Erbil, which has been inhabited for over a 5,000 years, to customary dinners that last for hours long, to Iraq's "first" American sports bar, to ever so expanding suburbs of Erbil, we tried to do everything as humanly possible.

Where ever we went, we were greeted by the most courteous people asking "where from?" No matter where we came from, there was always a story of a brother, sister, cousin, friend who lived in Paris, New York, Chicago, Beruit, etc. After decades of war, I quickly learned that the Kurdish people are seasoned travelers.

Your background is incredibly rich - world traveler, user group founder, developer of election monitoring tools, etc. Can you share more about your previous roles, particularly how your roles as community organizer for both open source projects and citizen engagement efforts have interconnected? Are there ways you feel you can make a greater impact working directly for the government?

As a Boy Scout, I enjoyed solving logistical problems with a community of peers. As I moved to become a digital native, I discovered similar enthusiastic groups. I have been a witness and a character in the digitization of a global society. At first, it was local BBS, then it was nothing more than a bunch of people complaining about the Apple Newton in Newsnet groups, then new Macintosh hardware on websites, to finally, my first true understanding of online/offline social networks, vintage italian motorscooter web boards and their physical manifestation, Scooter Rallies. By the time 2005, with a teetering economy, disastrous foreign policy, and personal heartbreak, I set out to re-imagine my own world connecting the dots as a life raft for/to humanity.

In many ways, my involvement with the open source community was accidental. For many years I stopped being politically vocal. During the height of the Dot Com boom, there was so much money being thrown around, it didn't matter where you came from. As long as you could convince someone, you found your way into a well paying job. For many years, I just traveled from employment to unemployment not realizing that my consumerist lifestyle was an exploration of the new American dream. Shortly after the invasion of Iraq and before my 25th birthday, I realized that this had to end.

From that year forward, I saw the power of openness and consensus building as the foundation of a global tribe fighting for open and free access to knowledge. The more I explored the world, the more I saw a connected fight between the fight for Free and Open Source tools, the Free Culture movement, and liberal political ideals. From Los Angeles to New York City to Ciaro to Tel Aviv to Mumbai to Bangkok to Buenos Aries to San Palo to Adelade - the world has successfully globalized a fight for freedom and equality.

I now pursue my work as the connective tissue between these worlds. As every day passes, I can't help but see new alternatives that help us build more efficient, participatory, and collaborative forms of governance. To me, open source is not just an ideal, but virtue. We can not continue to advertise and fight for an "open society" while using tools that are closed. Truth in labeling campaigns do not end at what we put into ourselves, but to what we put ourselves into. The future, near and far, is filled with conflicts that will challenge these virtues.

When I was given an opportunity to return to government and tasked with experimenting, I said yes. No where else in a democratic and free market environment can you help so many, so quickly and make history at the same time. I'm really fortunate to work with a passionate team who understands these complexities and is will to take them on nose first.

Anything else you would like to share with GOSCON's attendees?

1. Do not be afraid to get fired.
2. Keep your head down, but your chin up.
3. Know that your problem isn't unique. The context around the problem might be unique, but the solution is not.