Code for Miami Launches Open Data Policy Initiative
Code for Miami will host Miami Open Data Jam, a public collaborative brainstorming session from noon to 2 p.m. on February 22 at the Lightbox Theatre to gather ideas for an open data policy for Miami-Dade County. The event will be a part of Code Across America, a national weekend of events about making public data not only transparent, but accessible and actionable in communities.
“We have a vibrant tech scene in Miami, and many of our developers, designers and entrepreneurs are passionate about helping our community,” said Ernie Hsiung, co-captain of Code for Miami, a Code for America brigade of volunteer developers, designers, journalists and technologists who meet weekly to improve civic technology and open data access in the county. “One way to leverage our technological talent and energy is to continue improving access to public data.”
The county has been working to provide residents with better ways to use and access public data, most notably collaborating with Code for Miami on creating an API and apps using data from its 3-1-1 system. The county also hosts several applications using public data, including the property appraiser property search, a salary database, election reports, a crime map and geographic data. But, much of the county’s public data must be requested before it is disclosed, and few bulk datasets are available for easy, free download and data analysis.
“Miami-Dade County has a good start on public data access, and the goal of an open data policy is to make that information available to citizens with the least possible barriers for its use,” said Rebekah Monson, co-captain of the Code for Miami brigade. “We think that an open data policy is the next step toward putting our community at the forefront of civic technology, and we are excited to get Miamians involved.”
The Open Data Jam will occur during BattleHack, a PayPal-sponsored competitive hackathon at The LAB Miami to build apps that improve Miami. PayPal will sponsor lunch for Open Data Jam, and BattleHackers will be invited to join in the discussion.
Visit codeformiami.org/
WHAT: Code for Miami hosts Open Data Jam, a public collaborative brainstorming session about creating an open data policy in Miami-Dade County
WHEN: Saturday, Feb. 22, 2014, noon to 2 p.m.
WHERE: Light Box Theatre, 404 NW 26th St, Miami, FL 33127
MEDIA CONTACTS
Code for Miami brigade captains:
Rebekah Monson, rmonson@
Ernie Hsiung, ehsiung@