Cities Are Paving the Path for Government Data-Driven Innovation and Stewardship
New Insights from TReNDS
By Hayden Dahmm
With the limitations of in-person engagement as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, TReNDS’ recently launched several member sub-groups related to key challenges within the data ecosystem for members to discuss, debate, and work towards developing solutions. This blog is the first in a series that details the issues that the sub-groups are exploring.
Source: Photo by Tiago Louvize via Unsplash
In many places, local governments have been at the forefront of innovation around data for sustainable development. For years, cities have been combining traditional and novel data sources to measure performance and benchmark against other cities, to create dashboards to inform citizens, and to advance local policymaking. From the City Water Map in Cape Town, South Africa, which is credited with helping to achieve dramatic reductions in water consumption, to Los Angeles, USA, where the city is combining ground and space-based measurements to predict air pollution levels to pinpoint vulnerable areas, cities are leading the way for new possibilities and models around data-driven interventions, decision-making, and data stewardship. TReNDS’ research on data governance and stewardship at the municipal and local levels illustrates how national governments and international organizations can benefit from the lessons learned around cities’ approach to data stewardship.
The Role of the Chief Data Officer
A number of cities around the world have recently instituted a Chief Data Officer (CDO) position or near equivalent. While the exact title and responsibilities vary, these individuals have been instrumental in expanding and improving the use and stewardship of data in government. For example, in India, an initiative out of the Prime Minister’s office led to the creation of CDOs in some 100 cities around the country; the first of these was appointed in Pune in 2017, where the CDO is responsible for an open data initiative, data analysis, reviewing data dashboards, and promoting a data-driven culture. Likewise, Reykjavík, Iceland created a CDO position in September 2019, which included responsibilities for improving public services through data and supporting AI-based and data analytics projects, such as an analysis of requests received by the city’s service desks. At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the CDO worked with the Reykjavík government to predict which neighborhoods and jobs would be most severely impacted by lockdown measures. In fact, a number of CDOs across the world have been on the frontlines of supporting their city’s efforts to combat the pandemic, including building local COVID-19 dashboards, tracing PPE supplies, documenting issues of racial inequity, and more.
We have already seen how CDO practices tested first at the local-level can translate to the national-level, and even across borders. For instance, in 2014, France became the first country to establish a national CDO, but this development was inspired in part by New York City’s own CDO, who visited Paris. At TReNDS, we recently spoke with several CDO officials in cities in varying regions across the world to understand how these positions are being shaped, with a view towards how the innovations and experiences of data stewards can inform their national counterparts. To maintain confidentiality, we have anonymized some insights below.
Emerging Lessons on Data Stewardship at the Local and Sub-National Levels
Context Matters
From the specifically-defined to the imaginatively re-envisioned, and from the lens of the smart city to an even broader view of data in government – city data stewardship roles are emerging in a variety of ways around the world. And an immediate takeaway from our interviews is that CDO-like roles naturally depend on context, and the duties can vary greatly based on municipal and local needs. One CDO we spoke with runs an entire city government unit responsible for spatial information, data services, and the maintenance of city data archives; while the position was initially established to support compliance with data regulations, they have increasingly worked to demonstrate the added value of data through the creation of dashboards, as well as connecting open data tools with local business incubators. Meanwhile, another official taking on CDO responsibilities oversees the data analytics for a smart city agency, and his team supports the local government with predictive modeling and data analysis for policy, while also working with cross-sector actors throughout the city to foster a wider data ecosystem. A third official we spoke with is a city leader for research and policy, who recognized early on that success would depend on knowing where city data was located throughout government and has partially redefined their role to focus on bringing together existing data sources from across agencies to build new data products.
An Enabling Environment and Overcoming Data Silos
Although there are differences, each of the officials interviewed underscored the importance of having an enabling environment. One CDO explained that their role is underpinned by both regional and national legislation, while another spoke about the supportive and growing demand from other city agencies for the data products their office creates. A third official also highlighted the importance of executive-level backing for data initiatives and that new data collaborations have been catalyzed by a demand for local SDG reporting.
However, data silos still remain across government, and there can often be a disconnect between city, state, and national entities. For instance, TReNDS’ member, Eduardo Sojo’s research on data stewardship practices emerging in the city of León in Mexico, demonstrates how the role of data officials at the city-level is distinct from their national counterparts. While, León is using a variety of nontraditional data sources and has its own municipal planning institute responsible for providing data to local decision makers, its national counterparts work with more grounded data products.
The CDOs interviewed also highlighted how they’ve found creative ways to overcome data silos within government. In one case, the CDO identified a set of data stewards in different departments of the city government who are now responsible for coordinating particular datasets. Another held a series of meetings with government colleagues to help them appreciate the wider benefits of data sharing, dedicating particular time to negotiating with those who may be reluctant to open datasets that they have traditionally controlled. Furthermore, the CDOs are making connections outside of government to realize new opportunities, including leading collaborations with actors from the private sector, industry, and academia, as well as international organizations, such as the UN, and local civil society. These connections are helping to drive novel insights and possibilities.
Looking Ahead
The ongoing COP and the recent World City Day, centered around the theme of “Adapting Cities for Climate Resilience,” remind us of the important role cities must play in not only achieving the SDGs, but ensuring that data-driven decision-making is at the forefront of the climate agenda. Moreover, improving the availability and use of data will be one (albeit significant) part of the much wider transformations we will need to see in urban communities over the next decade. The role of city CDO appears to be well-positioned to help facilitate these changes, and the officials we have connected with are proving how they can adapt to local needs while addressing common challenges.