Alec Ross on Innovation in Diplomacy
Alec Ross is Senior Advisor to Secretary of State Clinton at the State Department, and is in charge of maximizing the potential of technology and innovation in service of America’s Diplomatic and Development goals. He is trying to “take advantage of the innovation in connectedness and use the tools of the 21st century to create the best possible outcomes and solve age-old problems.”
In our talk, he describes a villager in a small town in Africa who’s as connected with his cell phone as many of us are, showing that the world has changed, and it is up to us to pay attention and adapt.
Alec also talks about how to break down the traditional high wall between government and the innovation and tools of the technology industry.
Update:
David Weinberger also grabbed an interview with Alec Ross, posted here from his blog.
Hi Alec and Howard – I enjoyed hearing your comments. I lead innovation at Intuit, the company that makes TurboTax, Quicken and QuickBooks (and now many other products & services, too). We’ve recently designed a new innovation tool that has been enabling great things to happen in large organizations…broad visibility leading to collaboration, resulting in new ideas and innovations at a much faster pace. Please do let me know if you’d be interested in hearing more!