Alloy’s Open Data Roundtable
What happens when you bring together progressive data practitioners from across the ecosystem to collaborate on our toughest data challenges?
On December 17, 2019, Alloy hosted a roundtable of 14 progressive data practitioners in Washington, D.C.
The gist was simple: a forum where data practitioners come together to generously share their experiences and ideas, develop best practices, and collaborate on how to address common challenges in the progressive ecosystem.
There was no pitching at this gathering. No selling. No fundraising. No recruiting.
Instead, experts came together to roll up their sleeves, work through big challenges, and actively co-design the future of how we collect, understand, utilize, and share data.
For this gathering, we specifically focused on the sourcing and use of open (otherwise defined as publicly available, free, or nearly-free) data sets.
The origin of this gathering was two-fold:
- We’ve heard that many progressive nonprofits and campaigns are reinventing the wheel for standing up tenable strategies for acquiring and using open data sets. Many groups don’t know what publicly available data sources are available to them, or might not be aware of how these free data sets could be put to creative use.
- We found in our research that progressive data practitioners crave having a venue to learn from one another — not just learning about what tactics have worked, but also having a space to share all the things they’ve tried that haven’t worked. They seek a place to openly share hard-won wisdom and creatively generate solutions with others who are fighting for progressive change.
And so it came to be: Alloy’s Open Data Roundtable.
Not only did these 14 data practitioners come together to tackle these hard problems and share their experiences generously, but the roundtable also collectively agreed that the outputs of this roundtable should, and would, be dispersed among other progressive groups. We agreed that the insights, wisdom shared, and new ideas can be exponentially more powerful when put in the hands of progressive data practitioners everywhere. The outputs are now available for use by any other progressive entity who might benefit from this knowledge.
In this summary, you’ll find:
- Common barriers to using open data
- Deep dive conversations on how to make use of select open data sources
- Best practices for collaborating on open data
- An extensive appendix of open data sets available for progressive organizations to use
Progressive organizations and individuals can request access to the summary here. Note that access is limited to professional members of the progressive community.
We live in a world where data is a cornerstone of success.
We know that for progressive organizations, large and small, using data more effectively and efficiently will be how we secure the future of our democracy. This first gathering between data practitioners aimed to address challenges and inspire solutions for publicly available data; but this is just the tip of the iceberg. What else could be done with greater collaboration around data between progressive organizations?
Interested in participating in a gathering like this one?
Let us know. Alloy is committed to breaking down the barriers between the people fighting on the front lines of change and the information they need to win…and we want to include you.
