DATASHIFT BLOG

Today, we’re happy to launch a new report, Changing What Counts, which looks at how citizen-generated data can influence the way in which governments and institutions carry out data collection.

A couple of weeks ago, Tin and I had the opportunity to join Latin America’s biggest gathering of news nerds: the MediaParty, held annually in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and organised by HacksHackers Buenos Aires. It brought together around 5000 people to share what they’re doing with technology and data within the broad context of journalism and storytelling.

Last week, I joined the Eye on Earth Summit in Abu Dhabi to discuss the challenge of getting, accessing and using information and data to support sustainable development. The event was much more focused on the policy side of access to data and information than much of the DataShift work that I’ve been involved with so far

After nearly three years of intergovernmental discussions and unprecedented participation from civil society and other stakeholders, the outcome document for September’s Post-2015 Summit has now been agreed. The text clearly acknowledges that civil society organisations have a big role to play in ‘Transforming Our World’.

In a world of seven billion people, we know citizen-generated data has the potential to have a big impact. But in order to translate the potential into action, projects often need a little support from others with specific expertise.  As part of the DataShift and Desarollando América Latina 2015 initiatives, Wingu is working with six citizen-genereated data initiatives in Argentina by helping them take their project ideas to a viable product.

We are launching today three calls for researchers based in our three DataShift pilot locations: Argentina, East Africa (Tanzania and Kenya), and Nepal.