Local governments are facing some of the greatest challenges of the last half century. Not since the Great Depression have all sectors of the economy been negatively affected by a widespread fiscal crisis—and all at the same time. For local governments, the crisis has required unprecedented change; as local needs have increased, local governments have had to rethink traditional processes and improve upon established approaches to doing the people’s business.

To meet this challenge, they have been reinventing processes that shape how they are organized, how they deliver services, how they determine what should be done, and what results they must seek. Around the world, cities and other localities have been developing innovative new policies, administrative practices, and management techniques to address the problems wrought by the recession.

Innovation can take two forms. The first form is an “invention”: an original, breakthrough idea that represents a new approach or offers a solution not tried before. The other form is the “adoption” of new practices from other places with the intention of improving results or performance. Blending the two approaches is what Everett Rogers, a leading scholar on innovations, calls “re-invention”—that is, taking someone else’s idea and substantially adapting it to one’s own circumstances.(1)

But innovation alone is not enough. One government may have a creative solution to a problem, but if no one else knows about it, the impact will be limited to that one community. In addition, many governments may be experiencing the same problem, but if they attempt to solve this problem in isolation, the process will be longer and is likely to be less effective than it would be if they could all benefit from the experience of another local government that has developed a promising approach.

Thus, sharing information about creative problem solving and innovative solutions is an important service that any jurisdiction can provide to the entire local government community. Following are some leading examples of local government invention, adaptation, and recombination of ideas to address environmental sustainability, energy efficiency, citizen participation, and public health. They are shared in the hope that the creativity demonstrated by these local governments will inspire others facing similar needs.

San José’s Green Vision: Public Communication and Performance Management
Many U.S. communities have goals related to sustainability, but few have been able to harness the power of the community to achieve them. San José, California (population 948,300), has long been a leader in environmental stewardship through its efforts to recycle garbage, conserve water, reuse wastewater, and protect the foothills. In 2007 it took those efforts even further when the mayor and council adopted the San José Green Vision, focusing on economic growth, environmental sustainability, and an improved quality of community for the city’s residents and businesses.

Green Vision is an ambitious 15-year strategy with 10 goals designed to transform San José into a world center of clean technology innovation and cutting-edge sustainable practices. The city uses Web-based software to engage the community and communicate progress on the Green Vision. The site, sanjoseca.gov/greenvision/, went live in March 2008, allowing San José residents and businesses to provide input and track the city’s progress through engaging visual graphics.

Since the adoption of its Green Vision, San José has made remarkable strides. One example of success is in the area of waste diversion. In the last two years the city has reduced the amount of waste going to landfills, and it boasts one of the highest waste-diversion rates (recycle or reuse) for apartments and single-family homes in the country at 80% and 60%, respectively.

To leverage resources and effectively prioritize actions, San José has established a strategic framework built around five strategic areas: leadership, advocacy, financing, partnerships, and communications. This framework fosters collaboration and citywide implementation while connecting actions and tactics to overall goals. (Selected for presentation at the Alliance for Innovation’s Transforming Local Government Conference.)

Creating an Energy-Efficient and Resource-Resilient Community
In response to growing citizen concern over rising fuel cost, peak oil, and climate change, Alachua County, Florida (population 250,600), embarked on an aggressive community outreach program as a cost-effective way to reduce energy costs and energy use and address related climate implications. In December 2008, the Alachua County Energy Conservation Strategies Commission (ECSC), an all-volunteer, 15-person advisory board that worked with Web-based, information-sharing technology, delivered to the board of county commissioners a list of recommendations that would create an energy-efficient and resource-resilient community over the next 100 years:

• Implement a countywide weatherization and energy efficiency upgrade program to all existing residential and commercial building stock.
• Create community employment opportunities and grow new local businesses (“relocalization”) around discards and recyclable materials. This local economy should be based on low-energy consumption.
• Develop sustainable public transportation that is not primarily dependent on fossil fuel consumption.
• Maximize local food production that is independent of fossil fuel–based herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers.
• Maximize local, renewable energy production. For Alachua County this means solar power; other communities may have wind, water, tide, and geothermal options from which to choose.

The county believes that the sustainable solutions outlined within the ECSC’s report will help revitalize its economy, improve its environment, and increase the well-being of its citizens through the provision of lowered energy consumption, better resource efficiency, and locally derived energy sources. (Selected for presentation at the Alliance for Innovation’s Transforming Local Government Conference.)

Oasis: Citizens Online with Government
From 1997 to 2007, Seoul City, South Korea (population 10,970,000), experimented with a citizens’ creative idea suggestion program that encouraged citizens to participate in policy making with the local government. Unfortunately, the process was closed to many citizens, as suggestion forms had to be delivered either in person or by mail. Moreover, submitted ideas were reviewed by staffers in closed-door meetings without the participation of the citizens who suggested them. Needless to say, few citizens took part in the program.

In 2007, to engage more citizens and generate better ideas, Seoul City created Oasis as part of the Creative City Governance initiative promoted by its mayor. An online website that allows citizens to submit policy ideas and discuss them seriously, Oasis has been enormously successful. Since its inception, over 4 million citizens have visited the site, 34,000 ideas have been submitted, and 87 of those ideas have been formally adopted as policy.

With so many ideas being submitted through the website, Seoul needed a better method to evaluate the policy suggestions. Now ideas are reviewed first through an online discussion, then through an off-line discussion, and finally in an official Seoul Oasis meeting that is broadcast online with the originators of the suggestions invited to participate. Six ideas are discussed in these meetings each month.

Seoul City feels that Oasis allows the local government to gather input from a wider selection of citizen groups, and enables government officials to develop and modify policy according to citizens’ suggestions. As a result, Seoul benefits from better policies, and citizens are more engaged in their government. Future plans call for including business sector groups, such as bus drivers and preschool teachers, in the program. (UN Public Service Award Finalist.)

Increasing Access to Health Services
San Antonio, Texas (population 1,350,000), has the misfortune of having high rates of poverty and of uninsured citizens. To better reach those residents who are poor and uninsured, the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District has partnered with Goodwill Industries to provide preventive care and health education at existing Goodwill facilities.

The first clinic opened in 2007, offering immunizations and preventive services in an underserved neighborhood. Subsequently, wellness clinics opened at seven other Goodwill locations, where Metro Health offered blood pressure checks, glucose and cholesterol screening, mammograms, immunizations, and health education. The goal was to serve 4,000 people annually; in the program’s first year of operation, however, nearly 5,800 individuals received free or low-cost preventive services.

The collaboration has continued to grow. Now clients can combine their back-to-school shopping with their children’s immunizations for school. In addition, two new Goodwill facilities are nearing completion and will offer basic primary medical care.

The partnership did not require major funding, as the original lease cost only $3,700 a year. Goodwill Workforce Development participants are trained in health care data entry to assist Metro Health with record keeping, while Metro Health benefits through having cost-free workers. The concurrence of goals has allowed San Antonio and Goodwill Industries to partner and provide basic preventive health care to those who are most in need. (Recipient of the ICMA Community Health and Safety Award.)

Note
1. Everett M. Rogers, Diffusion of Innovations, 5th ed. (New York: The Free Press, 2003).