The emergence of a new public health threat serves as a reminder of the need for a collaborative emergency response network at the local, state, national, and international levels.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Blogs/GovLearning-Blog/2013/07/Collaboration-is-a-Matter-of-Public-Health
I’ve taught the ASTD E-Learning Instructional Design Certificate Program for a number of years now. One of the greatest takeaways for the participants, I have found, is how empowering it can be to realize the significant impact each of us can have as designers when we take on the central instructional design challenge: Create an environment and an experience in which the learner will gain some knowledge or skill more effectively and efficiently than he or she could without the instruction.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Blogs/ASTD-Blog/2013/07/Putting-the-Design-Into-Instructional-Design
In years past, the main driving force for implementing sustainable practices was the desire to build a good reputation. Today, what tops the list is improving operational efficiency and lowering costs. Understanding the Government’s current attitudes and actions toward sustainability helps uncover practices that are working well, areas for improvement or clarification, and potential solutions.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Blogs/GovLearning-Blog/2013/07/Sustainability-Attitudes-and-Actions
This month, we launched a new ASTD member benefit: online tools. To start we launched 7 tools and hope to expand our offering over the course of this year. The job aids, checklists, and assessments are designed to make your life easier.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Blogs/ASTD-Blog/2013/07/New-Tools-for-ASTD-Members
In March, the U.S. House of Representatives passed HR 803, better known as the SKILLS Act (Supporting Knowledge and Investing in Lifelong Skills), which reauthorizes the Workforce Investment Act.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Magazines/TD/TD-Archive/2013/07/Intelligence-House-Passes-SKILLS-Act
The nonprofit Partnership for Public Service has announced the 31 Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal finalists—outstanding federal employees engaged in important work to spur the economy, protect the environment and advance the health, safety and well-being of Americans.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Blogs/GovLearning-Blog/2013/05/Finalists-for-2013-Sammies-Announced
An annual federal employee survey shows overall satisfaction, but also shows signs of growing discontent.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Magazines/TD/TD-Archive/2013/05/Fed-Employees-Report-a-Slight-Decline-in-Job-Satisfaction
HowTo.gov Highlights Online Community of Best Practices for Digital Government
HowTo.gov is the destination for federal agencies to share what they’re doing to create a more citizen-centric digital government and make government information available anytime, anywhere, on any device.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Blogs/GovLearning-Blog/2013/04/Howtogov-Highlights-Online-Community-of-Best-Practices-for-Digital-Government
Mobile adoption has been growing exponentially in consumer markets, and is quickly redefining how government organizations engage with the citizens and solicit feedback for public opinion. To help agencies manage devices in the workplace, GovLoop published the report, Exploring Bring Your Own Device in the Public Sector, which was recently featured in the spring edition of The Public Manager .
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Blogs/GovLearning-Blog/2013/04/Exploring-Bring-Your-Own-Device-in-the-Public-Sector
We know that the majority of Congress have social media presences. We know that many agencies are using social media for more and more innovative efforts. But just as the web became mainstream in the mid-90s and exploded with overnight innovations, there were many entities with a web presence, but no rhyme or reason for why they existed. We need to leverage those lessons learned and apply them to our current social explosion.
http://www.astd.org/Publications/Blogs/GovLearning-Blog/2013/04/Social-Media-a-Growing-Opportunity-Within-Government