Data from city governments can inform conversations about equity, police violence, public spending, traffic collisions, and neighborhood changes. These conversations are only possible, however, if that city data is open and publicly available online.

The U.S. City Open Data Census benchmarks which datasets cities make open, and on Open Data Day 2018 we need your help. The Census currently includes 213 cities across the country, and we're setting out to create a complete set of information about open data in each of them.

Join the Sunlight Foundation's Open Cities team on Open Data Day 2018 to help assess open data in American cities. We'll give you an easy tutorial on how to search for open datasets and how to add that information to the Census. Then you'll pick a city to focus on and complete its entry on the Census. Once you’re done, stick around for food and drinks and to talk with some of DC’s open data experts.

We'll be getting together in person at Open Gov Hub in Washington DC. We'll have light snacks and laptops to share. If you have a laptop of your own, please bring it.

No previous experience with open data is required to join this event. City open data is supposed to be accessible for all residents, so we welcome anyone interested to join us, whether you're a data beginner or a data expert.

NOT IN DC?

In addition to this Washington DC event, we'll also be participating in BetaNYC's School of Data, happening the same afternoon in Brooklyn. Learn more and purchase tickets for that event here. And both of these events will come together on a Google Hangout and we welcome anyone, anywhere to join us there.

Tracking open data in cities can encourage local governments to improve the quality and quantity of data that's available online, and make it easier for residents to use that data to inform community needs and citywide change. Join us to help complete the 2018 U.S. City Open Data Census and be part of the movement advocating for better open data in cities across the country.

Many thanks to Open Gov Hub for hosting this event. Open Gov Hub is a co-working community in Washington, D.C. and a network of 40 organizations, mostly international development NGOs, promoting transparency, accountability, and citizen engagement around the world.

We are honored to welcome Open Gov Hub members Global Integrity and Open Data Watch for lightning talks about their work at the start of this event, to provide context for our U.S. cities work within the worldwide discussions of open government data.