Open Government Is a Global Phenomenon

The movement for more open government is a global movement. As the author of this 2003 article, Wayne Hanson, points out, "Open government is a good, if deceptively simple idea: 'Take government records and put them on the Internet for all to see.' In one stroke, government becomes transparent and accountable to the public. But while the principles are commendable, implementing open government is much more difficult. " The article goes on to state that there has to be the political will to support public access. Having a law on the books is not enough.
The same could be said for open government here in Massachusetts.

There are a number of international websites devoted to the issues of open government, some of which are listed at the end of the Hanson article. Here are a few of them:

The Commonwealth Centre for e-Governance, a British group which studies and provides information about e-government methods around the world.

Freedominfo.org, which is based at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., but tracks freedom of information movements around the world.

Open Government: A Journal on Freedom of Information, an online journal launched in March 2005 and devoted to research and communications about freedom of information legislation. It is based in the U.K. It also links to a blog which mostly is focused on British freedom of information issues.