AWS Public Sector Blog

To better understand the rapidly evolving workforce landscape and help our customers address barriers to digital skilling, AWS commissioned the strategy and economics consulting firm AlphaBeta to examine the skills needs of organizations across Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, and South Korea. In this blog post, we outline key insights from the report, “Building Digital Skills for the Changing Workforce,” and provide examples for how governments, employers, training providers, and the technology industry can come together to meet this challenge.

A research team led by Dr. Beatriz Martinez Lopez at UC Davis supports pig farmers with a data analytics platform that aggregates and analyzes animal health data to diagnose animal viruses and diseases. But this platform was primarily designed for analysts and data scientists. To truly transform animal disease management, Martinez-Lopez wants to put this data analytics tool into the hands of farmers around the world. So the research team is using the scalable, cost-effective tools of the AWS Cloud, along with a research grant letter of support from AWS, to make this optimized platform a reality.

At AWS, we know these are challenging times and we remain committed to supporting nonprofits. This blog post outlines a sampling of programs and resources for nonprofits, including grants and credits, open data access, cloud training, educational events, and more, designed to enable organizations of all sizes to overcome barriers to technology adoption, while enhancing the scale, performance, and capabilities of mission operations.

As part of the Amazon Sustainability Data Initiative (ASDI), AWS invited Nils Helset, co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of DigiFarm, to share how AWS Cloud technology and open data support DigiFarm’s efforts in precision farming to make agricultural practices more sustainable and efficient.

The AWS Space Accelerator is a four-week technical, business, and mentorship opportunity open to space startups from around the globe. Now in its second year, the AWS Space Accelerator is designed to support innovative startups from around the world looking to power their space missions using AWS. The application period opens today, with proposals due by April 15, 2022.

In 2021, AWS launched the Clean Energy Accelerator to help startups working in clean energy accelerate their impact. This accelerator resulted in funding and growth opportunities for the participating startups. Building off this success, AWS is now launching a new accelerator focused on the rapid growth of clean tech innovations: the AWS Sustainable Cities Accelerator. The new accelerator will focus on mobility and transportation with a goal helping companies learn how to innovate and accelerate their mission growth by leveraging advanced cloud-based technologies.

AWS signed a new Cloud Framework Agreement (CFA) with the Malaysian government, together with local IT provider and AWS Partner Radmik Solutions Sdn Bhd, to help accelerate cloud adoption in the public sector and help agencies save costs, boost digital skills, and drive innovation. AWS is the first international cloud service provider to have concluded and signed a CFA with the Malaysian government, as part of our long-term commitment to support Malaysia’s digital transformation.

From Tuesday, March 22 through Wednesday, March 23 in Washington, DC, the no-cost, in-person IMAGINE: Nonprofit conference will bring together leaders, technologists, and mission-driven innovators in the nonprofit sector to learn, connect, and inspire each other about the ways technology can support nonprofits in making a positive impact around the world.

Increased digitalization is transforming the payments landscape. Over 85 countries, representing over 90% of global GDP, are researching the possibility of launching a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC). However, as central banks evaluate the pros and cons of CBDCs, they are considering different approaches and designs to address the variety of needs and situations of each country. To advance understanding in this space, AWS worked with the Oliver Wyman Forum on a whitepaper which outlines a framework that can help support policymakers in evaluating the interdependencies between policy and technology choices. In this blog post, we summarize key principles outlined in the framework.

Skillshare is the largest global online learning community for creativity. They offer thousands of inspiring classes for creative and curious people on topics including illustration, design, photography, video, freelancing, and more. Skillshare wanted their members to easily discover relevant content with a seamless discovery process of personalized recommendations. Skillshare decided to test Amazon Personalize from AWS to make these data-fueled recommendations for members with machine learning. This blog post describes their Amazon Personalize solution architecture, their AWS Step Functions process, and the results of their experiment.