Workshop on Open Information Infrastructures Enabling Innovations

Information infrastructures and the large amounts of data that are accessible through them offer tremendous potential for innovation. In this workshop, we present and discuss two examples of such high-impact innovations: an open data e-infrastructure and government re-use of a business information infrastructure. Both offer possibilities for innovations in the public sector. The workshop covers both the infrastructures themselves and their challenges. Information infrastructures are open, heterogeneous, evolving and IT facilitated sociotechnical systems that are shared between multiple actors [HL10]. They include the information technology (IT) and organisational structures and networks, and the facilities and services based thereon that actors, society and economies need in order to function [TLS10]. These information infrastructures impact and even reshape the organisations and their services, also in the public sector [JCG09]. Information infrastructures and the large amounts of data that are accessible through them offer tremendous potential for innovation in the publicsector. This workshop covers the impact of open information infrastructures on enabling innovations. It does so by discussing practical implementations and innovation projects, and the consequences thereof for government organisations and their relationships with citizens and businesses. Through sharing knowledge and experiences gained from multiple perspectives and backgrounds, the workshop aims to both widen and deepen the understanding of the participants on the opportunities and challenges of open information infrastructures as an enabler for innovations of the public sector. Two specific information infrastructure developments are presented to and discussed with the participants: