Building on tremendous progress in 2019, as the Data Foundation sponsors, fellows, supporters, and staff plan for the potential in 2020, we are announcing a new organizing construct for our work. The Data Foundation seeks to define the future of open data, for a better government and a better society.
Today, we are releasing the five pillars for advancing access and use of high-quality information, which form the bedrock of the Data Foundation’s work in 2020.
Culture for Evidence-Based Policymaking. Changing long-standing practice to use data and evidence for informing key decisions and policy choices requires a supportive organizational culture and political environment. The Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 established new positions and leaders in hopes that these roles would collaborate and succeed in changing culture over time. This pillar focuses on developing insights for enabling an environment that encourages and empowers decision-makers and policymakers to demand evidence and for organizations to supply the data and capabilities to meet this demand.
Value of Accessible Government Data. As past efforts have made more government data accessible and open, articulating the economic and practical value of that information to government and the private sector is an essential element of future success for similar initiatives. Research that allows policymakers, citizens, and private companies to better understand “why data matters” for society can be applied to understand current policies and options for future reforms.
Technical Capability for Improving Data Quality. Cultural dynamics and understanding the value proposition for using data can only succeed in fulfilling the stated goals if the technical capabilities exist to enable high-quality data to be used by society. The application of targeted data standards and requirements for how data are published in particular formats based on modern technology can enhance data quality. Fostering policies and practices that efficiently enable data collection and review can similarly ensure government data are most useful for society.
Use of Data in a Responsible Manner. The value of government data can only be realized if data are actually used in practice. Multiple disciplines and strategies exist for extracting value from data, including policy research, statistics, program evaluation, and data science, among other fields. In each of these domains the ability to link, combine, and share data is increasingly relevant. This pillar focuses on strategies to access and share government data as well as to ensure public trust in protecting confidential and sensitive data.
Future Planning for Emerging Technologies and Innovation. New technologies are constantly emerging that change the nature of how data are collected, managed, accessed, and used. Whether privacy-preserving technologies or approaches for enhancing transparency in data transactions, the platforms for supporting innovation increasingly rely on the development and deployment of emerging technologies. This pillar focuses on the real-world implications of emerging technologies to develop insights relevant for policymakers in adopting new approaches for government data and policy.
To make these pillars real, in 2020 the Data Foundation will be hosting a new research symposium, launching a series of webinars, and engaging our fellows, stakeholders, and supporters to apply realism for the emergence of data as a strategic asset. These five pillars support the Data Foundation’s core mission and efforts to provide research and education for enabling a culture that respects data, recognizes data as an asset, and values the application of insights from data for informed decision-making.