Posts Tagged ‘open data’
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28 April 2014
FOI Notes: India, US, Malawi, Open Data, OGP Job
India: One winner of the 2014 Goldman Environmental prize, Ramesh Agrawal of India, is an active RTI user. The announcement said: “With a small internet café as his headquarters, Ramesh Agrawal organized villagers to demand their right to information about industrial development projects and succeeded in shutting down one of the largest proposed coal mines […]
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28 April 2014
State Secrets Laws Inhibit Open Data
By Travis Korte Korte is a research analyst at the Center for Data Innovation specializing in data science applications and open data. This article appeared April 25 in the CDI blog. Follow him on Twitter @traviskorte. In the United States and much of Western Europe, government data, such as economic indicators, government budgets, and agricultural information, […]
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22 April 2014
Tackling Corruption in Armenia With High- and Low-Tech Tools
By Jed Miller The following article appeared April 15 on the Voices blog of the Open Society Foundations. Data publishing is just another form of news publishing. An aspiring government watchdog in Armenia is facing an uphill battle. Weak safeguards against corruption and a government-dominated media have led to widespread distrust of elected officials and […]
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3 April 2014
FOI Notes: EU, OGP, Open Data, Journalism, Broadway
European Union: StateWatch comments on access at three EU institutions, stating: Frontex given until end of March 2014 to comply with the Ombudsman’s Recommendations to change its Management Board Decision putting into effect the Regulation on public access to EU documents Eurojust seeks to avoid any compliance until some undefined point in the future Europol […]
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4 March 2014
FOI Notes: Research, Oscars, OGP, Open Data, RTI Video
Research: The Governance Lab (The GovLab) at New York University announced the formation of the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Opening Governance, which will seek to develop blueprints for more effective and legitimate democratic institutions to help improve people’s lives. It is made possible by a three-year grant of $5 million from the John D. […]
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28 February 2014
FOI Notes: World Bank, Honesty Oscars, Contracting, Big Data
IFTI Watch: The Bank Information Center has updated its how-to guide called “Unlocking the World Bank’s Access to Information Policy.” The principal author of the “toolkit” is Veronique Danforth. Honesty Oscars: The Accountability Lab and ONE is conducting voting for the Honesty Oscars 2014 Feb. 24-28 “to honor groundbreaking people and creative that make our […]
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21 February 2014
FOI Notes: Research Papers, Open Data, OGP, Sunshine Week
Implementation Guidelines: The Centre for Law and Democracy and the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law have releasing two sets of guidelines “designed to assist Indonesian public bodies overcome the major challenges associated with implementing the right to information (RTI) legislation Indonesia adopted in 2008. One guideline provides an overall roadmap of what public bodies need […]
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14 February 2014
FOI Notes: Algorithms, Contracting, Open Data, Funder Transparency, OGP
Algorithmic Transparency: Nick Diakopoulos, of the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia University Journalism School, has written a report in which he says, “Algorithms, driven by vast troves of data, are the new power brokers in society.” In his conclusion, he advises: Next time you hear about software or an algorithm being used to […]
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20 December 2013
FOI Notes: Development, Surveillance, EU, China, Awards
Development: The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), Development Initiatives, CIVICUS and Beyond Access, IFEX and Article 19 issue a statement on why access to information must be a central pillar in the future of development and outline possible metrics to measure progress (found here). Surveillance: Some 110 civil society organizations issue a […]
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21 November 2013
FOI Notes: Open Data and FOI, Serbia, OGP, U.S. Guide
Research: A special issue of the Journal of Community Informatics explores the promise and practice of Open Government Data (OGD), including an article by Tim G. Davies and Zainab Ashraf Bawa called “The Promises and Perils of Open Government Data (OGD).” Another article, by Katleen Janssen, is titled, Open Government Data and the Right to […]
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15 November 2013
FOI Notes: RTI OGP Goals, Research, Open Data, EU, Open Agriculture
Open Government Guide: The right to information chapter in the new Open Government Guide suggestions of RTI-related commitments that countries could make in the context of the Open Government Partnership. Examples and other resources are provided. The 19-chapter guide was prepared by the Transparency and Accountability Initiative. T/AI is a donor collaborative that includes the […]
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2 November 2013
Ideas Emerge to Bring Open Data, RTI Efforts Closer
Suggestions for improving cooperation between the open data and right to information communities emerged during a session Oct. 31 at the Open Government Partnership summit in London. The ideas came during a temperate discussion among persons from each community. One suggestion was to work together to compile example of access laws being used to get data […]
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16 October 2013
Talking About a (Data) Revolution
By Dave Banisar Banisar is Senior Legal Counsel of Article 19. The following article was posted Oct. 16, 2013, on the Article 19 website. At the end of this month, over 50 nations will converge on London for the annual summit of the Open Government Partnership (OGP). The OGP has seen rapid growth since its […]
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14 October 2013
FOI Notes: Records, India Data, Open Data
Record Management: The interplay of record management and freedom information is explored in a new book by Eduardo Bertoni and Natalia Torres of the Center for Studies on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information (Centro de Estudios en Libertad de Expresión y Acceso a la Información – CELE) in Argentina. “The main purpose of […]
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16 September 2013
FOI Notes: Slovak Republic, United States, India, Budget Transparency
Slovak Republic: The U.S. Sunlight Foundation issues its first transparency case study on public procurement in the Slovak Republic. “Through our first case study, we’ve already found that online data publication can positively impact the growth of a region’s NGO community (which, in turn, can increase civil sector oversight), and we are excited about what […]
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27 August 2013
FOI Notes: Manning, World Bank, UK, US, Open Data, OGP, India, Grants
Whistle-Blowing: A post on the Open Society Foundations website says the 35 year sentence for Bradley Manning is out of step with the punishment he would have received in other democracies, and certainly not in line with international law, including as the Tshwane Principles. IFTI Watch: The World Bank has released a new report — […]
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13 August 2013
FOI Notes: Survey, Open Economics, Open Data, UNESCO Research Call
Survey: “Should FOIA requesters see responsive documents before they go online?” – the question posed in a Sunlight Foundation online poll. OGP: The Open Government Partnership has started a Bright Spots Competition to identify and showcase open government initiatives at th Oct. 31- Nov. 1 Annual Summit. Visit the Bright Spot Competition page for details. Open Economics Principles: The […]
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19 July 2013
UK Ministry Releases Code on Handling Datasets
The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Justice July 16 published Code of Practice (Datasets) to implement the new dataset provisions in the Freedom of Information Act. The code quickly drew criticism from the open data community. UK public authorities are required to provide datasets in a re-usable format and with a licence for re-use, where reasonably […]
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21 June 2013
FOI Notes: Open Contracting, Commentary, Grants, Research, etc
Open Contracting: The Open Contracting Partnership (OCP) announces a set of open contracting principles. Dennis Santiago, Executive Director of the Government Procurement Policy Board of the Philippines and OCP steering group member, is quoted: Transparency and Openness of government transactions are best manifested through the procurement information and contract data sets they make available to the public. However, […]
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18 June 2013
G-8 Leaders Sign Charter to Make Data More Open
The leaders of the Group of Eight countries June 18 committed to publishing government information in more useful ways, agreeing on an “Open Data Charter” and setting follow-up plans. The eleventh and final point of the summit declaration says: Governments should publish information on laws, budgets, spending, national statistics, elections and government contracts in a way that […]