Government Works Weekly #21
Jobs, Events, and a Hallowed View of Government
Welcome to your weekly roundup of opportunities, events, and information about how government works—and how government can work better—to improve the lives of individuals, families, and communities.
Might have to change the name of this thing to Government Works Periodically—which seems apt on a couple of levels—as life sometimes gets in the way of the weekly output.1 Apologies for the delay since the last issue. But, you know, you get what you pay for. And this newsletter is free.
APPLY YOURSELF – jobs, internships, funding, and other ways to get involved
Chief Executive Officer, Centre for Public Impact [deadline 22 Nov.]
Policy Director, Center for Science and Democracy, Union of Concerned Scientists [Hybrid / D.C.]
Associate Manager, Technology and Innovation (and more), Partnership for Public Service [Hybrid / Washington, D.C.]
Research Assistant, Division for Public Institutions and Digital Government, United Nations [New York / deadline 29 Oct.]
Program Specialist, Technology Modernization Fund, General Services Administration [U.S. remote / deadline 1 Nov.]
Communications Lead for the President's Management Agenda, GSA Office of Shared Solutions and Performance Improvement [deadline 30 Oct.]
Capital Fellows Programs, Center for California Studies [California / deadline 8 Dec.]
GAO Graduate Intern (Management and Program Analysis) and GAO Undergraduate Intern (Management and Program Analysis) (and more), Government Accountability Office [deadline 1 Nov.]
Student Assistant (and more), Power for Democracies [Remote / Berlin / deadline 30 Oct.]
EU Political Integrity Traineeship, Transparency International [Brussels / deadline 3 Nov.]
European Democracy Project Coordinator (Focus on EU Digital Transformation Policies), European Citizen Action Service [Brussels / deadline 1 Nov.]
Digital Action Lab, CIVICUS [funding for CSOs / deadline 17 Nov.]
Operations Lead, newDemocracy [preference for Sydney]
Strategic Partnerships Director, Heartland Fund [Remote U.S.]
Policy Analyst, Propel [Brooklyn / remote U.S.]
Manager/Senior Manager, State Campaigns (and more), Center on Budget and Policy Priorities [hybrid D.C. preference]
Senior Researcher (State Team), Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy [Flexible U.S.]
Senior Policy Counsel & Researcher, Fairvote [Maryland]
Senior Program Associate, Center for Tech and Civic Life [Remote U.S. / travel heavy / deadline 6 Nov.]
Research Analyst (and more), Economic Innovation Group [Hybrid D.C.]
Deputy Director of People, Culture, and Operations (and more), Democracy Forward [Washington, D.C.]
Executive Assistant (and more), Ballot Initiative Strategy Center [Flexible U.S.]
2025 U.S. Digital Corps Fellow [subscribe for updates]
(Senior) Legal Counsel, Voting Rights, Campaign Legal Center [Washington, D.C.]
DEPP Youth Advisory Council, Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening [deadline 15 Nov.]
Postdoctoral Associate (generative AI and democracy), MIT Governance Lab [Mass.]
Tender Opportunity for Independent Evaluator, School for Everyday Democracy Project, Involve [deadline 18 Nov.]
Public Policy Fellow, Google [deadline 15 Nov.]
Civic Design Researcher, District Department of Transportation [Washington, D.C. / deadline 1 Nov.]
These are all newly listed opportunities, for a lot more see the last issue (GW #20 from 11 Oct.). And if you know anyone looking for new opportunities, please share this newsletter!
UPCOMING EVENTS – webinars, conferences, and other human things
WEEK OF 28 OCT.-1 NOV.
28 OCT: Motivation and Purpose in the Public Sector [Building State Capacity]
29 OCT: Deliberative Democracy and Climate Change: Exploring the Potential of Climate Assemblies in the Global South [International IDEA]
29 OCT: Creative Designs for Democratic Participation: Legislative Theatre and City Council Meetings [National Civic League]
29 OCT: Autocracy in America Live [Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center]
29 OCT: Using Online Platforms to Better Connect Residents and Local Government for Deepened Engagement [Local Policy Lab]
29 OCT: MORNING IN AMERICA: Global Perspectives on the U.S. Election [Columbia University / Committee on Global Thought]
30 OCT: The New Varieties of Capitalism: Crack-Up, Spiderweb, and Monopsony [The New School for Social Research]
30 OCT: The Cost of Financial Insecurity: A Conversation about Democracy, Divisiveness, and Civic Engagement [Urban Institute]
30 OCT: Passion for the Public Good & Civic Education [Adams Speaker Series]
30 OCT: Rising Political Violence in America [Freedom House]
30 OCT: govDATAx 2024: Data to Results: Mapping the Future of Effective Government [Data Foundation]
31 OCT: National Tech to Gov Virtual Hiring Forum + Job Fair [OPM]
1 NOV: The Role of Unions in Elections and Democracy [ASH Center]
FUTURE EVENTS
3-6 NOV: 2024 U.S. Election Program [International Foundation for Electoral Systems]
6 NOV: Building Bridges: Transforming Stakeholders into Strategic Partners [Participation Factory]
7 NOV: Demos Public Services 2030 Network: Rethinking Public Sector Productivity [Demos]
12 NOV: State Capacity in 2025: The Democracy We Deserve [Roosevelt Institute]
12 NOV: Remixing Democracy: How to connect democratic practices into stronger ecosystems [People Powered]
12 NOV: Stockholm Series #3: The promise of participation – How collective decision-making can get us to more effective climate policies [International IDEA]
13 NOV: OMB Listening Session 1: Broadening Public Participation and Community Engagement [Office of Management and Budget]
13-15 NOV: 2024 Academy Fall Meeting [National Academy of Public Administration]
EYES & EARS – reading, podcasts, videos, and other good stuff
Playing catch up so this will be short and sweet. Just wanted to share something that I saw recently on Twitter that made me smile, which is less and less common on that platform these days. I don’t really want to comment on local New York politics since I don’t live there, and I don’t really endorse all of the policy positions this guy is taking in the video. But I was super happy to see a candidate for public office use this framing: “A government that makes our lives better.” Will be curious to hear what else Assemblymember Mamdani has to say as he runs for Mayor…
Source: Twitter
Things occasionally pull me away from this project. Family vacations. School holidays. Consulting projects. In this case, though, it was news of the death of a dear friend from my days pushing paper as a D.C. bureaucrat. I figured no one would miss this newsletter as much as I was missing my friend, and I took some time to grieve. If you have a public servant in your life, give them a big hug for me.