Selected Resources

On this page, we've selected and described some resources that we think are relevant to the "Context and Concepts" section.

DataSF Resource Library. https://datasf.org/resources/

DataSF provides detailed guidance on processes and issues around open data, including data quality, metrics, privacy and risk management, metadata, and licensing.

Detroit Digital Justice Coalition. (2015). Opening Data. (D. J. Nucera, Ed.). http://detroitdjc.org/zines/

DDJC's Opening Data zine is a crucial look at open data from a community-centered, human rights perspective. The zine advocates for the digital justice principles of access, participation, common ownership, and healthy communities. Other sections include an Open Data Primer and FAQ, and case studies about data at human scale.

Headd, M. J. (2016). Open Data Guide. http://opendata.guide/

Mark Headd developed this guide during his tenure as the first Chief Data Officer for the City of Philadelphia; it's written for an audience of state and local government workers. It's a concise look at the issues around opening data from the side of government -- if you are a library looking to partner with such data providers, gaining this perspective will be valuable.

Living Cities. "Field Scan of Civic Technology." November 26, 2012. https://www.livingcities.org/resources/131-field-scan-of-civic-technology

This document reports on a series of interviews with data intermediaries exploring the current state of the civic tech field and its potential to prompt change for the lives of low-income people. The report defines civic tech as "the use of technology by cities for service provision, civic engagement, and data analysis to inform decision making." Living Cities found that interview participants saw both promise and limitations in civic tech; limitations include resource constraints that affect local governments' experimentation with civic tech and the frequent poor reach of civic tech tools.

Mattern, Shannon. "Public In/Formation." Places (November 2016). https://placesjournal.org/article/public-information/

Shannon Mattern, Associate Professor in the School of Media Studies at The New School, makes a very compelling case for both the value and necessity of librarians and archivists in the civic information sphere. The writing here was a big influence on the Civic Switchboard team as we conceived our project.

Open Knowledge International. The Open Data Handbook. http://opendatahandbook.org/

Open Knowledge's handbook focuses on open data in government and civil society contexts. It includes a guide focused on processes for opening data; "value stories" of specific impacts made by open data; and a resource library of other related material.

Pew Research Center. “Americans’ Views on Open Government Data.” April 2015. http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/21/open-government-data/

This report presents findings from a 2014 survey investigating public awareness and perception of open data initiatives in the United States. The survey finds that two-thirds of respondents have used the internet for connect with the government in some way (for example, looking for information about the government and completing a transaction). The Pew Research Center found that Americans have "mixed hopes" about the potential of open data for improving government performance. This report provides readers with definitions of open government and open data and a look at how individuals are currently engaging with civic information online.

Sunlight Foundation. Open Data Policy Hub. https://opendatapolicyhub.sunlightfoundation.com/

This online resource provides guidance for communities drafting and implementing an open data policy. They offer a set of 31 best practices for strong policies, offering guidelines on how policy should address data publication priorities, oversight and review of policy and implementation, and the importance of protecting sensitive information.

W3C. (2017). Data on the Web Best Practices. (B. Farias Lóscio, C. Burle, & N. Calegari, Eds.). https://www.w3.org/TR/dwbp/

The World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) recommendation document is a response to the fact that while availability of data on the web is rapidly increasing, data publication "is not consistent in style and in many cases does not make use of the full potential of the Open Web Platform". Here you'll find best practices for many aspects of managing and sharing data, including metadata, licenses, provenance, versioning, indentifiers, formats, vocabularies, access, and preservation.

Wright, S., Marsh, Z., Bahlai, C., & Robinson, D. (2017). Mozilla Science Lab’s Open Data Primers. https://mozillascience.github.io/open-data-primers/index.html

Mozilla Science Lab's guide to Open Data has a bit of a research/science data focus, but much of the guidance here is applicable to all sorts of open data. If you're new to best practices around finding, sharing, formatting, and using open data you'll find a lot of solid basics in these primers.