Welcome Caitlin!
Caitlin Loftus is DataKind UK’s new Data Science Project Manager. She supports our data science programmes, triaging, scoping, and overseeing our projects to ensure we deliver impactful, responsible data science solutions for our partners.
What were you up to before DataKind?
I’ve worked in data science (or data science related roles) for the past six years. I started out in the private sector, where I learned a lot about large-scale web development, but quite quickly realised that what I was really interested in was ethical and responsible data science, and how to apply these techniques to social issues.
I then moved to Chicago where I studied for a Masters in Computational Analysis and Public Policy, which is an interdisciplinary programme focusing on applying modern computer science techniques to public policy and societal issues in a way that is ethical and fair. While I was there I worked as a data scientist/engineer embedded within a couple of research teams, one working with live COVID-19 data to build a new epidemiological model, and the second looking to quantify the full economic, social and health impact of COVID-19 across different communities within the US.
After my masters, I worked at the Justice Project at University of Chicago, using data on policing and neighbourhood violence to advocate for institutional reform. Most recently, when I moved back to London last year, I worked at the Greater London Authority, helping to automate some of their data pipelines and modernise their data visualisation outputs.
Why are you excited to join DataKind?
I’ve followed the amazing work DataKind UK does for a while, and it helped inspire my decision to move into the data for good space earlier on in my career. There’s so much I can learn about responsible data science and using data science for good by being part of DataKind UK, and I’m really excited to work somewhere where the mission and values align so closely with my own.
A big motivating factor for me was also the opportunity to work closely with charity partners, and help organisations across the sector to increase their impact through data science. I’ve volunteered for a range of charities over the years, so I’m excited to combine this with my data science background in this role.
Finally, the DataKind UK volunteer community is amazing and was a big part of why I was excited to join. I’ve already learned so much from our volunteers over the past two months and look forward to working alongside them all more.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I like to spend a lot of my free time outside. When I have the time I love to do this through hiking and camping, but long walks in London do the trick most of the time. Other than that I love reading, listening to music, drinking good coffee, and over the past few years have discovered a love of drawing.
