Oakland Data Day

On February 22nd, OpenOakland (http://openoakland.org) is hosting Oakland Data Day and we invite you to join passionate data geeks around the country for “Code Across America” and International Open Data Day. Oakland has joined the world of open data cities and we’re excited to work with city staff, nonprofits, and Oaklanders to show what can be done with these new resources. Oakland Data Day will be your chance to move beyond transparency with this hack day focusing on new discoveries, ideas, and analyses that open data makes possible.

Open data and open government are about more than just transparency. It’s important not to lose site of the key transparency function, and just as important to move beyond transparency into new forms and functions of open data and open government. Let’s put open data to work where it matters and let’s make the products of open data “simple, beautiful, and easy to use.”

In Oakland we will be working on projects that support the valuable work of our city boards and commissions - important local bodies that support effective government and represent our communities, but who desperately lack skilled data analyses, technology support, and data visualization capacity.

So if you like to wrangle public data, create informative visualizations, love simple web interfaces, or enjoy making data actionable, your city needs you! We’ll be bringing city staff and nonprofit leaders with data projects for you to tackle in a day of geeky data action.

Visit http://OaklandDataDay.eventbrite.com for more information and to register for Oakland’s first Data Day (http://OaklandDataDay.eventbrite.com). We will be launching some juicy new datasets on the day too, including code enforcement, business permits, the city’s crime api and more!

If you’re someone who feels like you’re maybe not a data wizard but really love crunching and mapping and the like, we think you’ll have a fun day with us too. And if you have a new project idea that uses open public data please do share your idea with us!