Last week, April Edmonds, a Web technology analyst for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC) and a member of MuniGov 2.0 launched a resource site designed to bring awareness to social media in government, particularly in the state of Florida. Her site is a volunteer effort that she nurtured in her spare time with a plan to help provide a resource to those in government who are still not clear on the ins & outs and pros & cons of social media. You can also follow the associated twitstream at http://twitter.com/FLGovTech.
Aside from some very informative and general content, the site also has a section specifically devoted to the intricacies of social media as it relates to the state of Florida. For instance, on the site you'll find links to opinions from the state attorney general's office on specific social media tools as well as a video tutorial with regards to social media in relation Florida's open records laws. The site includes a number of other useful features including detailed how-to guides for some of the most popular social media tools as well as lessons learned from April's own experience at the FWCC.
There are a few placeholders that April intends to fill in as time and experience permit, but taking a quick look around, you'll definitely see the valuable potential this type of resource holds. She's also looking for volunteers to help with keeping the content up to date and relevant. Send your suggestions to her directly at: flgovtech@gmail.com.
Perhaps this is something MuniGov can champion to become a model for other states to use in developing their own state specific resources. If anybody is thinking about, or has already done something similar in another state, please let me know!
