[open-government] New Discussion Paper: "Democratising the Data Revolution"
Jonathan Gray
jonathan.gray at okfn.org
Wed Jul 15 09:42:04 UTC 2015
Following up on this discussion paper, we also published a piece in Open
Democracy on "A data revolution for whom?":
https://www.opendemocracy.net/ourkingdom/jonathan-grey/data-revolution-for-whom
Any thoughts or comments very welcome (as per below)!
On 9 July 2015 at 13:57, Jonathan Gray <jonathan.gray at okfn.org> wrote:
> (Apologies for cross-posting!)
>
> Hi all,
>
> We've just published a new discussion paper on "Democratising the Data
> Revolution", which is intended to advance thinking and action around civil
> society engagement with the data revolution:
>
> - Blog post:
> http://blog.okfn.org/2015/07/09/democratising-the-data-revolution/
> - Tweet: https://twitter.com/OKFN/status/619109223432126464
>
> As it says in the blog post and in the report, we'd very warmly welcome
> any responses or thoughts via the following channels:
>
> - Join the discussion at: http://bit.ly/ourdatarev-forum
> - Fill in the form at: http://bit.ly/ourdatarev
> - Tag your responses with the #ourdatarev
> <https://twitter.com/search?q=%23ourdatarev> hashtag on Twitter
>
> Any help in sharing with colleagues or organisations who might be
> interested would be very much appreciated!
>
> All the best,
>
> Jonathan
>
> NEW DISCUSSION PAPER: “DEMOCRATISING THE DATA REVOLUTION”
>
> “New technologies are leading to an exponential increase in the volume and
> types of data available, creating unprecedented possibilities for informing
> and transforming society and protecting the environment. Governments,
> companies, researchers and citizen groups are in a ferment of
> experimentation, innovation and adaptation to the new world of data, a
> world in which data are bigger, faster and more detailed than ever before.
> This is the data revolution.” – UN Data Revolution Group, 2014
> <http://www.undatarevolution.org/>
>
> [image: Inline images 1]
>
> What will the “data revolution” do? What will it be about? What will it
> count? What kinds of risks and harms might it bring? Whom and what will it
> serve? And who will get to decide?
>
> Today we are launching a new discussion paper on “Democratising the Data
> Revolution”
> <https://assets.okfn.org/files/reports/DemocratisingDataRevolution.pdf>,
> which is intended to advance thinking and action around civil society
> engagement with the data revolution. It looks beyond the disclosure of
> existing information, towards more ambitious and substantive forms of
> democratic engagement with data infrastructures.1
> <http://blog.okfn.org/2015/07/09/democratising-the-data-revolution/#fn-17981:1>
>
> It concludes with a series of questions about what practical steps
> institutions and civil society organisations might take to change what is
> measured and how, and how these measurements are put to work.
>
> You can download the full PDF report here
> <https://assets.okfn.org/files/reports/DemocratisingDataRevolution.pdf>,
> or continue to read on in this blog post.
> What Counts?
>
> How might civil society actors shape the data revolution? In particular,
> how might they go beyond the question of what data is disclosed towards
> looking at what is measured in the first place? To kickstart discussion
> around this topic, we will look at three kinds of intervention: changing
> existing forms of measurement, advocating new forms of measurement and
> undertaking new forms of measurement.
> Changing Existing Forms of Measurement
>
> Rather than just focusing on the transparency, disclosure and openness of
> public information, civil society groups can argue for *changing what is
> measured with existing data infrastructures*. One example of this is
> recent campaigning around company ownership in the UK. Advocacy groups
> wanted to unpick networks of corporate ownership and control in order to
> support their campaigning and investigations around tax avoidance, tax
> evasion and illicit financial flows.
>
> While the UK company register recorded information about “nominal
> ownership”, it did not include information about so-called “beneficial
> ownership”, or who ultimately benefits from the ownership and control of
> companies. Campaigners undertook an extensive programme of activities to
> advocate for changes and extensions to existing data infrastructures
> <http://:%20http//ssrn.com/abstract=2610937> – including via legislation,
> software systems, and administrative protocols.2
> <http://blog.okfn.org/2015/07/09/democratising-the-data-revolution/#fn-17981:2>
> Advocating New Forms of Measurement
>
> As well as changing or recalibrating existing forms of measurement,
> campaigners and civil society organisations can make the case for the *measurement
> of things which were not previously measured*. For example, over the past
> several decades social and political campaigning has resulted in new
> indicators about many different issues – such as gender inequality, health,
> work, disability, pollution or education.3
> <http://blog.okfn.org/2015/07/09/democratising-the-data-revolution/#fn-17981:3> In
> such cases activists aimed to establish a given indicator as important and
> relevant for public institutions, decision makers, and broader publics – in
> order to, for example, inform policy development or resource allocation.
> Undertaking New Forms of Measurement
>
> Historically, many civil society organisations and advocacy groups have *collected
> their own data* to make the case for action on issues that they work on –
> from human rights abuses to endangered species.
>
> Recently there have been several data journalism projects which highlight
> gaps in what is officially counted. The Migrant Files
> <https://www.detective.io/detective/the-migrants-files/> is an open
> database containing information about over 29,000 people who died on their
> way to Europe since 2000, collated from publicly available sources. It was
> created by a network of journalists who were concerned that this data was
> not being systematically collected by European institutions. In a similar
> vein The Counted
> <http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/series/counted-us-police-killings>project
> from *The Guardian* records information about deaths in police custody in
> the US, explicitly in response to the lack of official data collection on
> this topic.
>
> [image: The Migrant Files]
> <https://www.detective.io/detective/the-migrants-files/>
> The Role of the Open Data Movement
>
> The nascent open data movement has often focused on the release of
> pre-existing information about things which are already routinely measured
> by public institutions. Advocates have pushed for the release of datasets
> under open licenses in machine-readable formats to facilitate widespread
> re-use – whether to develop new applications and services, or to facilitate
> new forms of journalism and advocacy. Datasets are often published via data
> portals, of which there are now hundreds around the world
> <http://dataportals.org/> at local, regional, national and supranational
> levels.
>
> As well as opening up new datasets, some public institutions have
> implemented mechanisms to gather input and feedback on open data release
> priorities, such as:
>
> - *Advisory panels and user groups* – e.g. as the UK’s Open Data User
> Group (ODUG)
> <https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/open-data-user-group>;
> - *Dedicated staff* – e.g. community management or “Chief Data
> Officer” positions;
> - *User engagement channels* – e.g. social media accounts, forums and
> mailing lists;
> - *Data request mechanisms* – e.g. Data.gov.uk’s dataset request
> service <http://data.gov.uk/data-request> or the EU Open Data Portal’s “Suggest
> a Dataset” <https://open-data.europa.eu/en/suggestDataSet> form;
> - *Consultation processes* – e.g. Open Government Partnership National
> Action Plans;
> - *Solicitation for input around data standards* – e.g. the US’s Federal
> Spending Transparency issue tracker
> <https://fedspendingtransparency.github.io/> on GitHub.
>
> In principle these kinds of mechanisms could be used not just to inform
> priorities for the release of existing datasets – but also in order to
> facilitate engagement between institutions and civil society actors around
> what should be measured by the public sector and how.
>
> To use a metaphor, if data can be compared to photography, then might the
> open data movement play a role in intervening not just around access and
> circulation of snapshots taken by public institutions, but also around what
> is depicted and how it is shot?
> Questions for Discussion
>
> We would like to catalyse discussion and gather input about how to
> increase civil society engagement around the data revolution and questions
> about *what* should be measured and*how*. To this end, we invite advocacy
> groups, journalists, public institutions, data users, researchers and
> others to respond to the following questions.
> What Can Civil Society Groups Do?
>
> - What can civil society organisations do to engage with the data
> revolution?
> - What role might the nascent open data movement play in mediating
> between civil society organisations and public institutions around what
> should be measured?
> - What opportunities does the data revolution present for civil
> society organisations?
> - What are the best examples of democratic interventions to change,
> advocate or create new forms of measurement (both present and past)?
> - What are the biggest obstacles to greater civil society engagement
> with the data revolution? How might these be addressed?
> - Which kinds of transnational challenges and issues (e.g. climate
> change, tax base erosion) are currently inadequately dealt with by national
> data infrastructures?
> - What areas might new kinds of measurement make the biggest
> difference, and how?
> - What factors are most important in ensuring that data leads to
> action?
> - What might civil society groups do to flag potential risks and
> unwanted consequences of data infrastructures as well as their benefits?
>
> What Can Public Institutions Do?
>
> - What can public institutions do to better understand the interests
> and priorities of civil society organisations around what should be
> measured?
> - Are there examples of where open data initiatives have facilitated
> significant changes to existing datasets, or the creation of new kinds of
> datasets?
> - Which kinds of mechanisms might be most effective in understanding
> and responding to the interests of civil society organisations around what
> is measured and how?
> - What are the biggest obstacles to public institutions responding
> more effectively to the data needs and interests of civil society groups?
> How might these be addressed?
>
> How to Respond
>
> We welcome responses on these and other topics via the channels below:
>
> - Join the discussion at: http://bit.ly/ourdatarev-forum
> - Fill in the form at: http://bit.ly/ourdatarev
> - Tag your responses with the #ourdatarev hashtag on Twitter
>
> ------------------------------
>
> 1.
>
> In this context we understand data infrastructures as composites of
> technical, legal and social systems (e.g. software, laws, policies,
> practices, standards) involved in the creation and management of data.
>
> <http://blog.okfn.org/2015/07/09/democratising-the-data-revolution/#fnref-17981:1>
> 2.
>
> See: Gray, J. & Davies, T (2015) “Fighting Phantom Firms in the UK:
> From Opening Up Datasets to Reshaping Data Infrastructures?”. Working paper
> available at:http://ssrn.com/abstract=2610937
>
> <http://blog.okfn.org/2015/07/09/democratising-the-data-revolution/#fnref-17981:2>
> 3.
>
> See: Bruno, I., Didier, E., and Vitale, T. (eds) (2014) Statistics and
> Activism. Special issue of *Partecipazione e conflitto. The Open
> Journal of Sociopolitical Studies.* Available at:
> http://siba-ese.unisalento.it/index.php/paco/issue/view/1248
>
> <http://blog.okfn.org/2015/07/09/democratising-the-data-revolution/#fnref-17981:3>
>
>
> --
>
> Jonathan Gray
>
> Director of Policy and Research | *@jwyg <https://twitter.com/jwyg>*
>
> Open Knowledge <http://okfn.org/>
>
> *okfn.org <http://okfn.org/> | @okfn <http://twitter.com/OKFN>*
>
--
Jonathan Gray
Director of Policy and Research | *@jwyg <https://twitter.com/jwyg>*
Open Knowledge <http://okfn.org/>
*okfn.org <http://okfn.org/> | @okfn <http://twitter.com/OKFN>*
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