WEBVTT

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I know what you're thinking!

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Wok Star?!

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That girl is never getting a job
in government!

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And you know what?


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You're probably right!

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Why is that?

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Well, it turns out that my playful tone
just doesn't properly match

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the sober affection best suited
for the world's most wicked problems!

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Now, you may not have heard
of wicked problems and that's ok,

NOTE Paragraph

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but it's how we talk about challenges
and policy.

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There are social challenges
that are extremely difficult to solve

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and resistent to resolution.

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Where solving one aspect of the problem
inherently unravels others.

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In this way, they are also
not very cool problems,

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like, "Oh, my god, that problem
is so wicked!"

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or, "Hey society, where did you get
that wicked problem?!"

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So, we've got problems.

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More than 99 of them, and lots of them
are wicked.

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From poverty to health care,
the environment, nuclear weapons,

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education and Rob Ford.

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(Laughter)

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(Applause)

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And you've got me!

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With vacillating levels of seriousness
and over there, government!

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Which frankly, takes itself
a bit too seriously.

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And yet, policy making is a sort of game.

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It's one where we try to make society
better and get things done.

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In fact, it's a four player pursuit 
refereed by the media,

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where the public service, NGOs,

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experts and the private sector

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jostle for power and influence.

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Just like this, and they jossle
so intensely

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that they overlook the public who watches
from the sidelines.

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That's right, public policy 
keeps forgetting about the public.

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By the way, that's you.

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And if you want to be a player
in the process by all means,

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but your moves are few.

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You could protest, write a letter
make a deputation, attend a consultation

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or tweet passive aggressively.

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(Laughter)

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The process forces you to be reactive
not proactive.

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So, where do we look
for some policy-style inspiration?

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Imagine that the city of Toronto asked you
to help allocate the municipal budget.

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A city in Brazil, Porto Alegre, 
has been doing just that since 1989.

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Or what if the political party you support
crowdsource their election platform

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asking you to shape and inform 
their priorities?

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Hold the phone!

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Is there a place for such tomfoolery
in something as serious, 


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as rigorous and as important
as public policy?

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There can't be.

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And what you need to know is this:

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Get your notebooks out
you're going to want to write this down.

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Somebody zoom in on me.

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(Laughter)

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There are two Ps in 'public policy'.

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There's a 'p' in 'public' 
and there's a 'p' in 'policy'.

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But that's not what I mean!

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I want to explain that there are actually
two kinds of policy:

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there's big 'P' policy 
and there's small 'p' policy.

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Big 'p' is the articulation of a course
of action that's intended to influence.

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It's more formal, typically regulated.

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Big 'P' is bills and laws and acts
and is, by no means, a child's play

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but that doesn't mean
we can't play around with it.

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Last year, Iceland rolled the dice
and they crowdsourced their constitution.

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Small 'p'.

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Small 'p' 
is the articulation of a standard.

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It's less formal, typically unregulated, 
and lots of small 'p' innovations

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happens thanks to the ingenuity
of ordinary people.

NOTE Paragraph

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Think of something like 
the Rocket Radar app,

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a privately developed application
that lets you know

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when the next street car or bus
is coming, down to the minute.

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That was made possible 
by the government practice of open data.

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Another cool example 
is how some walk-in clinics or doctors


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will now text you when it's finally
your turn, sparing you

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that mind-numbing wait.

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These are user-led improvements
to public processes

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that make things better for everyone.

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And that's exactly the same vision
that drives big 'P' policy change.

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This guy, small 'p', is a sandbox
for the public good

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and it's where we can start to get 
in the ring with these wicked problems.

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What else is going on in the ring?

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Last year, this random computer gamer
solved an AIDS research problem

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that has been stumping scientists 
for 15 years,

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using an online game called "Fold it!"

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It took the gamers 3 weeks.

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This is an example of how the public
has a place

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when those experts 
are spinning their wheels.

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In 2007 Americans played 
the alternate reality game

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"World Without Oil".

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The simulation helped players imagine
what a peak oil crisis might be like

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which in turn, 
helped players engineer solutions.

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What I like about this example is 
that it wasn't mandated by government,

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the public made their place

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and the result
has obvious benefits for the state.

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I said there were two p's in public policy
and I want a third: 'play'!

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And should we proactively just play around
with problems?

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Games aren't new, I know that.

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But what is new, is the notion 
that there is a link

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between the elements of games
and widespread productive participation

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in policy making.

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In Canada, we are ignoring the merits
of gamification, crowdsourcing

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and mass collaboration.

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And what I am endorsing 
is a brave new policy world

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that's more inclusive, 
experimental and daring.

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And more small 'p' can be the catalyst
we need for big 'P' to stand up

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and take note of new, hot ways
for getting shit done.

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Policy makers, I haven't forgotten
about you!

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Don't think I worte my talk thinking
you wouldn't be here or watching online

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and can we give it up for people 
watching online from work?

NOTE Paragraph

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(Applause)

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You guys, I 'Triple Dog' dare you
to come out and play!

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But first I need you to recognize


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that's there is a serious place
for play in policy.

NOTE Paragraph

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As for the rest of you, policy spectators,


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you can be an extraordinary source
of surprising solutions

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that our most pressing and yes,
even wicked problems!

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But there is only one way to find out.

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Ladies and gentlemen, your move!

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It's the end!

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(Applause)

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Thank you!

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(Applause)