Scott McNealy is Chairman of Sun Microsystems a company he co-founded in 1982. He is a fierce competitor in business and in a hockey rink. He can be abrasive and outspoken explaining that "diplomacy has never been my middle name." He is an avowed capitalist and self-proclaimed libertarian. Nonetheless, his bio page says he's a "Champion for Sharing."

In fact, Sun, as part of its business strategy shares almost everything. Its Java software platform and Open Office applications suite are open source. Recently it purchased one of the largest open source databases vendors, MySQL AB. Even its hardware is open source with the release of OpenSPARC. McNealy has invested in Curriki.org to improve sharing of educational resources and Sun has launched OpenEco.org as a shared platform to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

So here's the question, if a curmudgeonly fellow like Scott McNealy can champion sharing in the fiercely competitive environment of silicon valley, why can't government and the civic sector do a better job of sharing around social issues?

Scott will discuss this topic in Washington, DC, hosted by the Center for Global Development (May 5, 11am). Ellen Miller, co-founder and Executive Director of the Sunlight Foundation and I will be discussants. The event, entitled " Open Source, Open Education and Eco-friendly: Can Sharing Improve Policy?," is free and open to the public -- RSVP now.

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