Initial vision developed for the project

Result from a community engagement activity

PEOPLE’S DATA WAREHOUSE
HESTER STREET COLLABORATIVE & NY STATE DEPT. OF HEALTH

Role: Project Lead for Phase One and Two
Dates: February 2019 - March 2020
Scope: Concept and framework development, product conceptualization, prepare core team to take on a product development lead
Focus areas: Data justice, Data democratization, and Community development

Overview
The People’s Data Warehouse is a project to ensure community control of their local narrative and the data that shapes it, to strengthen self-determination, increase civic engagement and improve planning outcomes.

The pilot project, led by local community leaders, focuses on the Two Bridges neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, with the goal of developing a toolkit and strategy for community led planning that is replicable, publicly available, and user-friendly. It will include a community engagement bill of rights and a neighborhood dashboard of quantitative and qualitative data that catalogs the goals, strategies and lessons learned in local planning efforts, and beyond and provides a feedback loop between a local neighborhood and city planning.

The big picture project is led by a technical advisory committee of planners, organizers, and government workers who aim to radically reimagine how planning is conducted. It will ultimately result in a manifesto and call to action for planners, data scientists, policymakers, and all citizens.

Process
I led two phases of the research and development of the People’s Data Warehouse.

Phase one focused on concept development and community-led research. This entailed primary and secondary research methods with a landscape assessment of community-owned data initiatives around the globe and equity-centered community engagement practices. This allowed the team to lay the groundwork for the concept of People’s Data Warehouse by identifying the project’s north star, roll-out strategy, and key variables to further develop its framework.

Phase two focused on building out this framework with a road map and actionable next steps for the development of a digital tool in partnership with the NY Department of Public Health.

Outcome
A digital tool and a concrete framework are currently in development. Both are set to be released late 2021.