The Economics of Free and Open Source Software: Contributions to a Government Policy on Open Source Software

This document seeks to lay the groundwork for a government policy on free and open source software. We briefly characterize the extent of the open source software phenomenon. We analyse its pros and cons for the government, in its role as both an engine of economic development and a large user of information and communications technologies. We conclude with a series of recommendations for the government, as both “economic and industrial policy maker” and “large user.”free software, intellectual property rights, free source code, open source code, free operating system, GPL licence, BSD licence, innovation, forking,

Shuttered Public Schools: The Struggle to Bring Old Buildings New Life

Large-scale public school closures have become a fact of life in many American cities, and that trend is not likely to stop now. This report looks at what happens to the buildings themselves, studying the experiences of Philadelphia and 11 other cities that have decommissioned large numbers of schools in recent years: Atlanta, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Mo., Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Tulsa and Washington

Power Failure: Addressing the Causes of Underinvestment, Inefficiency and Governance Problems in Ontario's Electricity Sector

Economic and policy problems plague Ontario’s electricity sector six years after the government’s initial attempt at market liberalization in 2002. Several changes of direction later, the electricity sector has a hybrid structure of regulation and market forces, with a central procurement role assigned to the Ontario Power Authority (OPA). This paper questions whether a central procurement approach represents the best means of achieving a well-functioning electricity sector and, if not, what better approach exists.governance and public institutions