Top Stories

Mapped: The innovation labs transforming government. To make it easier for people to connect and collaborate, Apolitical has compiled a directory of transformative government, public sector and policy innovation labs from around the world. Let us know what you think.
(Apolitical)

Mass tourism is ruining historic cities. Only government can stop it. From European hotspots to India and Indonesia, mass tourism is pricing citizens out of their homes and overcrowding capitals. Here are four of the more creative ways governments are curbing it.
(Apolitical)

Has gender equality made women commit more crimes? A narrowing crime gap might mean gender equality isn’t helping women into crime, but instead enticing men away from offending. So could feminism be making the world safer?
(Apolitical)

Top writing from our members

Ten years on: Where is public sector innovation headed? Public organisations are being called on like never before to offer relevant answers to the concerns of citizens. These shifts could make public sector innovation deeper and more sustainable.
(Christian Bason, Danish Design Centre)

Governments are now funding GovTech. They must stay patient. GovTech is a “promising” new industry, but when venture capitalists see start-ups for whom government is client, they often perceive risk, slowness and uncertain growth trajectories.
(Tanya Filer, University of Cambridge)

GET INVOLVED

Have you worked on an innovation you want to share with the world? Submit yours for the chance to reach a global audience at the Dubai World Government Summit.
Submit here.

Gender and Race Equality

Britain could make companies publish their racial pay gap. Prime Minister Theresa May’s government admits that few employers make this information available by choice. A consultation will consider making such reporting mandatory.
(The Guardian)

India’s first women-run train station has posted “record earnings”. The women’s empowerment initiative brought a side benefit as female ticket inspectors caught more fare dodgers. The model is set to roll out to other stations.
(Thomson Reuters)

Evolving Cities

Washington DC is launching discount taxi services for low-income residents. Only 40% of the taxis and ride-hailing vehicles in the District of Columbia are occupied. A pilot will let residents book and pay for the nearest for-hire vehicle at an affordable rate.
(Route Fifty)

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"We now need to build public institutions that aren’t just 'on the internet' but 'of the internet'. Public bodies pursuing innovation must seriously understand the implications of the latter." - Christian Bason, Danish Design Centre.

Health and Ageing

Canada is legalising pot. Today, Canada will end 95 years of prohibition and take its place as the second country in the world to legalise cannabis, after Uruguay. Experts expect the industry to reach US$5billion by 2020.
(The New York Times)

Technology Frontiers

Egypt is opening its first blockchain school. “We believe in the power of coding. We aim at empowering all skilled Egyptian youth not just to land a decent or high paying job but to build a better country and a better economy,” the school’s founder said.
(Egypt Today)

And finally

Scotland is declaring war on “lazy mapping”. Locals in the Shetland Islands, a small archipelago 100 miles from Britain, complain that misleading cartography confuses travellers by positioning them too close to the mainland UK. New regulations will change that.
(The Washington Post)

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