Values

Documents/DoDO/Values

OUR PRINCIPLES OF INFORMATION - The Department’s “Principles of Information” underlie our wide-ranging efforts to increase transparency and openness. The Principles3 say in part that: “It is Department of Defense policy to make available timely and accurate information so that the public, the Congress, and the news media may assess and understand the facts about national security and defense strategy. Requests for information from organizations and private citizens shall be answered quickly…Information shall be made fully and readily available, consistent with statutory requirements, unless its release is precluded by national security constraints or valid statutory mandates or exceptions.” As the Open Government Directive notes, all data releases must be “subject to valid privacy, confidentiality, security, or other restrictions” under existing law and policies. The mission of the Department makes us particularly aware of the need to ensure transparency does not compromise national security or the safety of our personnel. Additionally, given the interaction we have with millions of individuals (service members past and present, civilian employees and dependents), privacy protection is also of paramount importance. As we operate under the presumption of openness, every potential release of data by the Department must continue to be scrutinized and evaluated for its potential to – however unintentionally – jeopardize safety, security or privacy standards.

A TEAM APPROACH - In the spirit of the Open Government Directive, this document represents a collaborative effort of individuals and organizations within and outside of the Department of Defense. Under the coordination of the Office of the Deputy Chief Management Officer, more than a dozen entities within the Department assisted in the brainstorming, writing and editing process. Additionally, numerous outside voices (e.g., experts, other government agencies and outside groups) contributed both formally and informally to this plan. For a more complete list, please see “Contributors to this Plan.” As a team, we face the challenge of implementing this plan across an agency of immense scope. We have operations across the globe, including three Military Departments, 10 Combatant Commands, 18 Defense Agencies and 10 Field Activities. We have over three million employees (uniformed and civilian). Crafting and implementing policies that will be effective throughout this complex and diverse Department will require our ongoing attention and regular adjustments.

ENCOURAGING INNOVATION - As we look ahead to increasing openness and transparency at the Department, we will continue to build upon our rich history of expanding the frontiers of technology. The satellite-based Global Positioning System (GPS), originally developed to enable accurate navigation for the military, has successfully been applied to a variety of civilian uses not contemplated when it was first launched. With devices now widely available that can calculate driving directions and even measure the distance between two points on a golf course, GPS is an example of how industry can leverage the Department’s investments in ways that alter the world as we know it. Over 40 years ago, the precursor to today's Internet was developed at what is now known as the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). In December 2009, we marked the anniversary of the occasion with a competition designed to explore how broad-scope problems can be tackled using social networking tools. In a remarkable demonstration of the Internet's evolution and capability to foster collaboration, a team from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology won a $40,000 cash prize by successfully locating ten large, red balloons less than nine hours after they were launched at undisclosed locations across the United States. Utilizing the Department’s infrastructure and resources to their fullest potential will be central in delivering on our commitment to Open Government.

THE ROLE OF THE PUBLIC - As further detailed in later sections of this plan, we solicited and seriously considered the input of the public at large and particularly of the open government community. Through the public participation tool on www.defense.gov/open, over 90 ideas were suggested.

A LIVING DOCUMENT - This plan is by its nature unfinished and is intended as a starting point and baseline, not a restrictive framework. As we – and our colleagues at other agencies and in the public – move forward with implementing the Open Government Directive, new ideas will be generated, pitfalls discovered, challenges overcome and technologies embraced. We intend to continue dialogue on the best way forward, and adjust our actions and plans accordingly.