There’s been a lot of talk of late when it comes to Government and its use (or lack thereof) of new technologies to make life better for citizens. For those interested in the topic there’s a conference on in Canberra next Monday that will be well worth attending.

Gov 2.0, brought to you by CeBIT, will be at Canberra’s Hyatt Hotel on October 19 and will bring together Australia’s leading government Social Media policy makers and the top exponents of public sector Web 2.0 use from the US, UK and New Zealand.

It will report feedback to the Federal Government’s own Government 2.0 Taskforce, and feature snapshots of best practice Social Media policies from the Obama Administration, Westminster as well as Australia’s own Web 2.0 visionaries.

Governments around the globe have been gradually adopting social media. The UK Government, for example, has been using Wikis since 2005, and some 79 of Britain’s 645 MPs use Twitter along with almost 200 other parliamentary candidates.

Just last week, the UK High Court has issued an historic ruling for a writ to be issued over Twitter against an anonymous tweeter, blaneysbarney, claiming to be political commentator Donal Blaney.

Westminster’s experience and use of Gov 2.0 techniques will be headlined in Canberra by Dr Andy Williamson, the director of the UK Hansard Society’s eDemocracy Program, which is promoting greater dialogue and partnership between the UK Parliament and the public.

Dr Williamson, also the former Deputy Chair of the New Zealand Government’s Digital Strategy Advisory Group, will outline how the UK’s Hansard Society is driving such online political communications and furthering “digital democracy”.

In the US as well, President Obama has made Open Government, and the use of technology to achieve this, a cornerstone of his Administration.

Dr Melodie Mayberry-Stewart, the Chief Information Officer and Director of the Office of Technology for New York State, will outline progress in adopting Web 2.0 in US Governments in light of Obama’s Open Government Memorandum.

Dr  Mayberry-Stuart, the first woman and African-American to be appointed to the role of New York CIO, led the implementation of the New York State’s “Empire 2.0” strategy, modeled after the Memorandum.

To demonstrate the Australian Government’s own expertise, ACT Senator Kate Lundy, one of the government’s most experienced users of Web 2.0 technology, will deliver the opening address, outlining how Government 2.0 technologies and methodologies can help all levels of government build a strong citizen-centric approach in the delivery of services.

Also speaking is Ms Mia Garlick, Assistant Secretary for the Digital Economy within the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, and one of the most high profile advisors to Minister Stephen Conroy. Ms Garlick is helping lead the discussion within Government about all issues relating to the long-term direction of the nation’s Digital Economy. With her unparalleled expertise, Ms Garlick’s insights will add further authority to the powerful speaker panel.

Australian case studies of successful government Web 2.0 initiatives will give the conference a valuable practical focus.  Ms Bobby Graham the Director Web Publishing (Acting) at the National Library of Australia, for example, will outline the library’s enthusiastic use of Wiki-based collaboration since 2006, one of the world’s pioneering applications of such techniques.

A full speaker list, and agenda for the conference, is available at www.gov2.com.au. The conference will also be streamed online live at www.gov2.com.au/live

The conference isn’t free…at the moment tickets range between $695 and $994 ex GST. That having been said, it sounds like it’s going to be a top day for the Gov 2.0 movement here in Australia so it will be well worth attending or, at the very least tracking online, on Monday.

Earlier in the year Atlassian raised $US100K for Room to Read in just 5 days by selling licenses for 2 of their products for only $5 each.

Atlassian launched a second campaign on Wednesday this week, this time selling starter versions of 6 of their top products for just $10 each with, once again, all proceeds going towards Room to Read.

Room to Read is an international organisation that aims to break the cycle of poverty through the power of education. They do this largely by providing books and libraries to kids who’ve never had the opportunities that we, in the developed world, often take for granted.

On the first day of the campaign they raised $US30,000 and they’re fast approaching US$50,000 as i write.

Make sure you check this out, buy something if you’re looking to get your hands on some of Atlassian’s goodies for cheap and, most importantly, make sure you spread the word!

New Aussie Startup, SpaceOut, offers a service that allows people with spare or unused space in their home or business to make it available to people who need to rent space for storage.

The plan is simple. Let “SpaceOwners” make money from their unused space and help “SpaceSeekers” save money on storage costs.

The team is made up of Business Development Manager, Damon Russell; Branding Consultant and ex-AFL player Nathon Irvin; and Web Developer, Andy Henderson.

The initial concept was the result of a need Russell had:

The idea just popped into my head” said Russell. “I was visiting a mate before I went overseas, and noticed his garage was half empty. I asked if I could store my stuff with him while I was away and he said Sure! My next thought was – Hey, wouldn’t it be great if everybody could do this… and SpaceOut was born.

The team have expanded into Office and Parking Spaces and have a few other related services in the pipeline. It might be a little early for them to start diversifying, but at least there’s a common thread there of hiring space to those who need it. When you think of it that way it’s obvious that the market will continue to grow as space becomes more and more limited in big cities.

At the moment the service is completely free, but Russell says it’s likely they’ll start charging a nominal fee for listings in the near future.

Future plans also include heading to the US and Europe, where they’ve already received emails from people asking if they have a service there.

One big thing that could hold SpaceOut back is people’s willingness to store their stuff in someone else’s house. The idea of safety and insurance is covered on their FAQ page, but still it’s not quite the same level of security you get when using a traditional storage facility.

Outside of that, it’s an interesting idea and yet another great example of the Internet enabling new markets for all sorts of goods and services.

There’s some momentum building in the mobile-based augmented reality space in Oz.

Below are 2 of the startups that are leading the Aussie AR charge.

Rob Manson and the team at MOB are doing some great work using the Dutch-developed Layar technology.

MOB are the first Layar developers in Australia and have a wide range of layers in development for some well known brands, along with the buildAR service that lets you add, search and manage your own layers and Points of Interest with just a few clicks.

Below is an example of the underlying Layar technology in action.

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Danny Housseas and his Sydney-based team at Insqribe have also entered the market, adding a recently announced  mobile-based Augmented Reality service to their suite of interactive marketing tools.

Insqribe have also picked up Nick Gonios, COO & Director of SportsPassion and 3eep, as an investor and advisor so look for more good news from them soon.

Below is an example of Insqribe’s AR service in action.