Sunshine Week Activities
- The Events Calendar will upcoming Sunshine Week activities being held March 10-16, 2024. To have your organization’s event or activity considered for listing, please use the Sunshine Week Activity Submission Form.
UPCOMING Events
RECENT activities FROM SUNSHINE WEEK 2024
The Fight for FOIA: A Conversation About the State of Government Transparency, Marquette University, Milwaukee
The Freedom of Information Act, the federal law recognizing the public’s right to government information, is more than 50 years old but faces challenges old and new. The advent of the internet and digital records has created a new world of opportunities and impediments for laws originally designed for a hard-copy era. The panel, comprised of a leading FOIA scholar and two investigative journalists, will consider the state of freedom of information laws, including enduring problems like delay and access to law enforcement as well as potential solutions.
April 2 at 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm EDTDigging for the Big Scoop: Uncovering Great Stories with Freedom of Information Laws, New York City
Hear top experts at The New York Times, Newsday, The City, and KFF Health News reveal how to break original stories using local and national Freedom of Information laws. At this all-star panel, you’ll learn strategies to obtain records for investigative reporting that has impact and drives change, such as coverage of denied reproductive care, prisoner abuse and torture, illegal campaign donations, toxic dumping, and more.
March 24 at 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm EDTNYC School of Data 2024
NYC School of Data 2024 — a community conference that demystifies the policies and practices around open data, public interest technology, and service design. This year’s conference concludes NYC’s Open Data Week & features 30+ sessions. With programming support from the Open Data Team at the NYC Office of Technology and Innovation, our conference convenes city officials, technologists, designers, data analysts, and community members around open data, civic technology, and service design in New York City.
March 23 at 9:00 am - 5:00 pm EDTHow Public Records Shed Light on State and Local Government in Rhode Island
Public records are one of the key tools journalists use to shed light on state and local government in Rhode Island. Hear from working journalists who use Rhode Island’s public records law daily to tell important stories and hold our government accountable. Learn the good — and bad — of public records law in Rhode Island.
March 16 at 10:30 am - 12:00 pm EDTDemystifying Democracy Series: Sunshine Week – How Public Records Shed Light on State and Local Government in Rhode Island
Public records are one of the key tools journalists use to shed light on state and local government in Rhode Island. Hear from working journalists who use Rhode Island’s public records law daily to tell important stories and hold our government accountable. Learn the good - and bad - of public records law in Rhode Island.
March 16 at 10:30 am EDTFOIA Fest 2024, Chicago
Our annual public records conference, FOIA Fest, is returning as a one-day in person event on Saturday, March 16. Kimbriell Kelly, Assistant Managing Editor and Washington Bureau Chief at the LA Times, will headline the event.
March 16 at 8:30 am - 3:00 pm CDTCounselors Off the Cuff | Sunshine Week Edition, Columbia, S.C.
The S.C. Press Association's annual legal update which will focus on the importance of public records and open government as March 10-16 is Sunshine Week! Join our panel of media law experts who will offer a no-holds-barred discussion on the open government, open courts, First Amendment and legal issues you're facing. Panelists include SCPA Attorneys Taylor Smith and Jay Bender, and Carl Muller.
March 15 at 2:45 pm - 3:45 pm EDTRhode Island Department of State Sunshine Week: Business Services Data Hub
This workshop will provide an overview of the Rhode Island Business Data Hub, a collection of interactive tools to explore business data collected by the RI Department of State. This workshop will also cover how to use the Corporate Database to find details about a particular business or non-profit.
March 15 at 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm EDTThe Appeals Process: Steps to take when your FOIA requests are denied, webinar originating from Washington, D.C.
Public records belong to the public. So what recourse do journalists and the public have when your records requests are denied?
March 15 at 12:00 pm - 12:45 pm EDTSunshine Week CLE: Open Records & Meeting Updates, Lancaster, PA
For the second year, LBA members will visit the LancasterOnline | LNP newsroom for a training session featuring a panel of seasoned attorneys from Lancaster and beyond.
March 15 at 11:30 am - 2:00 pm EDT2024 Sunshine Breakfast and Awards Program, Seattle, Wash.
We hold this event each year to recognize champions of transparency. We give the following awards: The Toby Nixon Award--recognizing life-time achievements. The James Andersen Award--recognizing an individual who has done extraordinary things promoting the coalition's mission. The Kenneth F Bunting Award--recognizing outstanding journalism utilizing public records or educating the public about the PRA/OPMA.
March 15 at 8:00 am - 9:30 am PDTEDUCATION EMPOWERMENT: Learn how to hold Pa.’s schools and universities accountable, Spotlight PA via Zoom
Transparency in K-12 and higher education helps empower parents and other taxpayers to feel connected and drive positive change.
March 14 at 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm EDTFOIA Rights and Guidelines for College Students
The Student Press Law Center and the Society of Professional Journalists seek to maintain constant vigilance in protecting the First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and the press and encouraging a climate in which journalism can be practiced freely on college campuses. If you're unfamiliar with Freedom of Information (FOI) laws, need help submitting a records request or simply don't know where to start, this webinar led by SPLC senior legal counsel Mike Hiestand can help.
March 14 at 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm EDTA Discussion with SPJ Sunshine Award winner City Bureau
City Bureau created Documenters.org in 2019 to collect public meeting data across disparate government websites. Documenters take notes at local public meetings, spaces that harbor huge potential for government transparency, but that often receive no media coverage and produce minimal records. This program evolved into an expansive network with nine cities across the country and counting. Last year, they received an SPJ Sunshine Award for their contributions to open government in Chicago and beyond.
March 14 at 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm EDTFree webinar: 25 records to request right now
Public records requests can help you find new stories, expand beat coverage, spark deep-dive investigations — and you'd be surprised at how much information is out there! In this session, IRE executive director Diana Fuentes will share 25 different public records to request right now. This webinar is hosted in partnership with Sunshine Week, to shine a light on the importance of public records and open government.
March 14 at 2:30 pm - 3:30 pm EDTRhode Island Department of State Sunshine Week: Open Government & Lobbying
This workshop will provide an overview of the Rhode Island Online webinar via Zoom. Department of State’s Open Government resources, including the Open Meetings Portal, the Lobby Tracker tool, and contact information for government officials.
March 14 at 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm EDT2024 Annual AFPF Sunshine Week Symposium
Americans for Prosperity Foundation (AFPF) is happy to announce that this year’s annual Sunshine Week symposium will feature a variety of voices from the center-right space discussing the importance of transparency, open government, and Freedom of Information (FOI) laws at the federal, state, and local levels. In addition to daily essays, there will be a webinar with the authors on Thursday, March 14, at 1pm Eastern.
March 14 at 1:00 pm - 2:15 pm EDTArtificial Intelligence: The Intersection of Public Access and Open Government, Washington, D.C. in person and via livestream
Make plans to join us as the National Archives and Records Administration hosts a panel discussion on “Artificial Intelligence: The Intersection of Public Access and Open Government” Thursday, March 14, at 1 p.m. ET.
March 14 at 1:00 pm EDTSorry State of Disclosure
Judiciary watchdog Fix the Court will release a new report the morning of March 14 analyzing the state of financial disclosure in each of the 50 state supreme courts. That afternoon, FTC will host a call for interested members of the press and transparency groups to talk about the challenges of obtaining the reports, what they tell us about our states' top jurists conflicts of interest and how the disclosure process can be improved — both in terms of accessing them (too many states don't post reports online) and expanding on the often scant content (so scant, they made the federal judiciary'...
March 14 at 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm EDTPublic Records Tips and Tricks in Tennessee, in person event
Paul McAdoo, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press attorney in Tennessee, will talk about the Tennessee Public Records Act, including some tips and tricks for accessing information as well as recent court decisions in an East Tennessee SPJ program on Thursday, March 14.
March 14 at 12:00 pm - 1:15 pm CDTAmerican Oversight and First Amendment Foundation: FOIA Overview & Florida Focus, virtual seminar
American Oversight and First Amendment Foundation will be hosting The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) virtual seminar to highlight the procedures, practices, and pitfalls. This will be hosted by AO’s legal and research team in collaboration with First Amendment Foundation. We will use Florida as a case study to highlight the important work being done via public records requests.
March 14 at 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm EDTShining a Light: Assessing Government Transparency in South Dakota and Beyond
A virtual conversation with with David Bordewyk of South Dakota NewsMedia Association and nationally recognized FOIA expert David Cuillier of the Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project, and co-director of the Brechner Center for Advancement of the First Amendment, at the University of Florida. Sponsored by the South Dakota NewsMedia Association First Amendment Committee.
March 14 at 10:00 am - 11:00 am CDTCoffee & Conversations with reporter David Ferrara of the Post and Courier, Greenville, S.C.
The Post and Courier Greenville will open our newsroom for Coffee & Conversations, an event held throughout the year to introduce you to a journalist from our local news team in the Upstate.
March 14 at 8:30 am - 10:00 am EDTOpen Records, Meetings, Courts, Books, Minds, Denver
Join Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, Tattered Cover bookstore and Sie FilmCenter for a Sunshine Week conversation about timely First Amendment, freedom-of-information, and freedom-to-read issues in Colorado.
March 13 at 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm MDTOpen Government 2024 Summit, Washington, D.C.
The D.C. Open Government Coalition's annual Sunshine Week event focuses on the intersection of public safety, transparency, accountability and trust.
March 13 at 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm EDTSunshine Week Summit, Washington, D.C.
Join the DC Open Government Coalition's popular spring event for the community and all friends of open government. It’s in person only, Wednesday, March 13, 2024, from 5:30 to 8 p.m.
March 13 at 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm EDTSunshine Week happy hour with NonDoc, Edmond, OK
To recognize Sunshine Week, which celebrates journalism’s role in government transparency, we’re inviting you to Edmond’s Frenzy Brewing Co., 15 S. Broadway, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 13, for a casual happy hour and a chance to talk with our team about issues that matter to you. Of course, we will be accepting donations as part of our fundraising campaign to help sustain our Edmond reporting position.
March 13 at 4:30 pm - 6:30 pm CDTRhode Island Department of State Sunshine Week: Elections & Voter Turnout
This workshop will cover how to use the voter turnout tracker during an election cycle, as well as historical voting information such as voting method and demographic information, the mail-ballot drop box locator, and how to find a map of your legislative districts.
March 13 at 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm EDTAmerican Oversight: Careers in Government Transparency
Join American Oversight and government transparency experts on Wednesday, March 13th at 3pm (EST) for a one-hour, virtual discussion and networking session in celebration of Sunshine Week! Participants will gain a broad understanding of careers in government transparency, have the opportunity to network with peers and professionals in the field, and learn about where to look
March 13 at 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm EDTU.S. Department of Commerce and Census Bureau, The Power of Open Government, online via WebEx
Annual Sunshine Week Event: "The Power of Open Government" will highlight how access to info & data expands the reach of open government, allowing for transparency, participation, & collaboration across sectors in meaningful ways.
March 13 at 9:00 am - 1:30 pm EDTDepartment of Commerce’s Sunshine Week Event 2024
The Department of Commerce’s Office of Privacy and Open Government, and the Census Bureau’s Policy Coordination Office, will host its Annual National Sunshine Week event on Wednesday, March 13, 2024, between 9:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
March 13 at 9:00 am - 1:30 pm EDTSunshine Week Summit, Harrisburg, PA
Join us as we recognize Sunshine Week, a national celebration of government transparency laws throughout the country. We’ll review updates to Pennsylvania’s open meetings and open records laws as well as hear from all the Office of Open Records executive directors.
March 13 at 9:00 am - 12:00 pm EDTNowKalamazoo Sunshine Week: Kill the Messenger film screening, Portage, Mich.
The week of March 10 in Sunshine Week across the United States — a celebration of the Freedom of Information Act and Open Meetings laws, two important ingredients to democracy and transparency in government.
March 13 at 6:40 am - 9:00 pm EDTNowKalamazoo FOIA Workshop open to the public, Kalamazoo, Mich.
As part of Sunshine Week, NowKalamazoo will be hosting two workshops for learning about Michigan FOIA law, offering residents a chance to craft information requests to local government with some expert assistance.
March 12 at 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm EDTSunshine Week Celebration, Albuquerque, N.M.
Celebrate Sunshine Week with the NM Foundation for Open Government!
March 12 at 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm MDTSunshine Week Session FOIA 101: A Public Records Primer for Everyone. Via Zoom
Whether you’re a FOIA first-timer or just looking to pick up some pro tips, this training will give you the guidance you need to file requests properly and get responses that yield more information.
March 12 at 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm EDTRhode Island Department of State Sunshine Week: Public Laws, Bill Searching, & the Library webinar
Public Laws, Bill Searching, & the State Library – This workshop will provide a demonstration of how to research public laws in Rhode Island and how to use the State Library’s resources to access our government.
March 12 at 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm EDTFOIA Technology Partner Showcase, Sunshine Week 2024, Washington, D.C.
Sunshine Week celebrates our FOIA community. Open government is a key component of democracy and Sunshine Week helps to shed light on initiatives that support this mission.
March 12 at 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EDTSunshine Amid The Storms, Kansas City, Mo and via Zoom
Join the League of Women Voters of Kansas City/Jackson-Clay-Platte Counties for a panel discussion to raise awareness of Sunshine Laws that hold officials accountable and promote transparency in government.
March 11 at 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm CDTWILL/AFP: Citizens Guide to Open Government, Eau Claire, Wisc.
The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty’s Preserving Democracy Project has published The Citizens Guide to Open Government, a comprehensive resource that outlines the legal framework surrounding open records and meetings, equipping you with the knowledge to hold government accountable effectively.
March 11 at 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm CDTKeeping The Light On: Holding Government Accountable, Manchester, N.H.
The Nackey S. Loeb School of Communications, the New England First Amendment Coalition and the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College will jointly host a panel discussion. Titled "Keeping the Light On: Holding Government Accountable,” this event will be in-person at the Loeb School's new location inside the NHIOP.
March 11 at 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm EDTSunshine Week: Your Right to Know, Philadelphia
Join us for a panel discussion to learn about the importance of open government and access to public information and records.
March 11 at 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm EDTFlorida Center for Government Accountability #SunshineWeek luncheon fundraiser featuring Rick Wilson, Sarasota, FL
The Florida Center for Government Accountability, a non-partisan 50lc3 organization that focuses its government accountability and journalistic efforts primarily on local governmentsJ providing support and assistance for citizens and investigative journalists working to hold government accountable.
March 11 at 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm EDT