ericherman
commented
1 year ago Rather than add this to the introduction of the Standard itself, would this content be better on publiccode.net describing the standard?
An argument can be made that contributors must be aware of this goals, and thus "bundle policy and code" applies, in which case I might expect it to be in docs/ and referenced from CONTRIBUTING.
Text cut from our SDGs blogpost:
Embodying these values in the Standard for Public Code
The [Standard for Public Code] puts our values into practice. It's the standard we implement in our stewardship practice. By including requirements to bundle both source and policy code together in the open, it works directly towards Goal 16.6: Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions
The first criterion of the Standard for Public Code is "code in the open". Collaborating in the open inherently increases transparency of a project. When public organizations do this, it enables the general public to scrutinize the way policy is being implemented in software, and allows them to hold institutions accountable. As an added bonus, we also believe that collaborating rather than working in silos will be more effective on a societal scale in the long run.
By informing the governance of public code projects, the Standard also supports Goal 16.7 : Ensure responsive, inclusive and representative decision-making. Developing open source software according to good practices makes it possible for anyone, from school kids to cabinet ministers, to participate in the process. It might not solve all the problems of representation, but it dramatically lowers all barriers to entry.
When public policy is implemented through software, i.e. turned into public code, it effectively executes governance. The ability for citizens to access, get insight and influence this public code leads to more responsive, inclusive and representative governance processes.