President Obama’s Technology Initiative: Aneesh Chopra, Federal Chief Technology Officer, at The City Club, July 10

President Barack Obama has recently appointed Aneesh Chopra to the position of Federal Chief Technology Officer.  As CTO for Virginia for the past three years, Chopra has been focused on the specific technology challenges of government. The role of the CTO is to provide visionary leadership and to help the government explore the transformative potential of new technology. 
 

Although the choice to appoint Chopra has been questioned by some in the industry because he does not have the typical “Silicon Valley” background, the National Association of State Chief Information Officers ranked Virginia Number 1 in technology management as a result of his oversight. 

Chopra will address an audience at The City Club of Cleveland at noon, Friday, July 10, 2009.

According to many leading industry sources, Chopra grasps the power of open source software, Web 2.0, user-participation, and why it’s better to harness the ingenuity of a developer community than to specify complete top-down solutions. He has also expressed his enthusiasm for the idea of a “digital commonwealth,” recognition that technology can help us to come together as a society to solve problems and create value through common effort.

Tickets are $18 for members and $30 for non-members. Lunch is included. Tickets can be purchased by calling The City Club at 216.621.0082 or visiting the website at www.cityclub.org.

Established in 1912 to encourage new ideas and a free exchange of thought, The City Club of Cleveland is the oldest continuous free speech forum in the country, renowned for its tradition of debate and discussion. The City Club’s mission is to inform, educate and inspire citizens by presenting significant ideas and providing opportunities for dialogue in a collegial setting.