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Call for International Working Groups Announced 

Albany, NY - The University at Albany’s Center for Technology in Government (CTG) has received a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Digital Research Program (DG) to build and sustain an international digital government research community. Over four years, CTG and its partners will create opportunities and venues for international research discussions and enable U.S. researchers and educators to advance their work through international collaboration.

“The Center for Technology in Government is broadening the reach of UAlbany by pursuing exciting opportunities to address public sector issues from a global perspective,” said University at Albany President Kermit L. Hall. “By fostering collaborative partnerships, CTG will be creating an important new community of researchers that crosses national and cultural boundaries. We are grateful that the National Science Foundation has acknowledged the leadership of CTG in the international research community.”

“Most digital government research around the world addresses challenges of burgeoning information and technological change within the context of a single country. Only a few investigations have compared results across national boundaries or tackled problems that are truly international in scope,” said CTG Director Sharon Dawes. “As an unwanted consequence, issues of growing importance in an increasingly networked world are not receiving the attention they deserve.”

The project takes a long-term strategic approach to build a stable infrastructure for future generations of researchers. The work will include the development of several international working groups selected by a peer review process. The groups will work together for three years to develop joint research agendas on critical international questions, produce white papers on key topics, and initiate joint research projects to continue after a three-year start up period. The call for proposals has been issued (www.ctg.albany.edu/projects/dgi) and selection will occur later this year.

The project will also produce a reconnaissance study that summarizes the current state of international digital government research and create an annual international institute for doctoral students.

“The results of this project will enable the U.S. to extend its scientific leadership role in digital government by systematically studying, understanding, organizing, and facilitating a global research community in the domain,” said Sylvia Spengler, NSF program manager for the project. “We expect the connections and collaborations developed between U.S. and international institutions and researchers will result in new knowledge discoveries, new lines of intellectual inquiry and sustainable support for future international digital government research relationships and projects.”

This project is being carried out in partnership with the Digital Government Research Center (DGRC) at the Information Sciences Institute, University of Southern California. “We are excited to form a partnership with CTG in this important work,” said Valerie Gregg, DGRC Assistant Director for Development. “Together with our international colleagues, we aim to lay a solid foundation for the next generation of global DG researchers.”

The mission of the Center for Technology in Government at the University at Albany is to foster public sector innovation, enhance capability, generate public value, and support good governance. We carry out this mission through applied research, knowledge sharing, and collaboration at the intersection of policy, management, and technology. 

The University at Albany-SUNY has a broad mission of excellence in undergraduate and graduate education, life-enhancing research and scholarship, and a commitment to public service. A University at Albany education brings the world within reach to students through nine schools and colleges, and an honors college. A student body of more than 17,000 students has a global connection to more than 140,000 alumni. For more information about this internationally ranked institution, visit www.albany.edu. For UAlbany's extensive roster of faculty experts, visit www.albany.edu/news/experts.php.