Open Data, Innovation on a Government's Budget

Last week during lecture Prof. Zak mentioned that there is no better time than now to start a new social venture or enterprise. If necessity truly is the mother of invention, then the recent "Great Recession" has led to the need for city governments to do more with less. This is why cities such as Chicago, San Francisco, and New York have begun to encourage the creation of websites and applications that are specifically designed to address the needs of their citizens through. The Open Data movement is one that focuses on fostering collaboration between coders so citizens have easier access to the mountain of data large urban governments have.

The Chicago region is one of the best example of Open Data. In 2011 Cook County started off the movement by releasing dozens of data sets for the public to peruse. Just last year Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel followed suit, by signing an Executive Order that made hundreds of data sets available to the public. Today 955 data sets are available from Chicago with another 402 through Cook County.

The availability of this data is amazing, but how is it made accessible to laymen? That is where HackNight comes into the picture. A monthly meet up of coders from the region, HackNight allows data enthusiasts to meet up, share ideas and most of all collaborate. With a primary focus on the needs of citizens Chicago's HackNight has created interactive maps using the Open Data that show how the city is zoned to what streets have been plowed after snow storms.

Chicago Public School Tiers App

HackNight has even created an app which helps parents and students as they try and navigate the Chicago Public Schools High School application process. The Chicago Public School Tiers app helps applications find out what Tier they end up, as many of the schools have quotas for the number of top students they can admit from each tier. This app ensures parents are aware of changes made to the tier system, making the process much easier. With minimal cost to the tax payer, Chicago and it's citizens have found a way to be innovative on a budget.

Organizations such as Open Knowledge Foundation are pushing for more innovations such as Chicago's HackNight and Open Data pool. With very little to lose, it is no wonder that many other cities are taking notice of the Open Data movement. Code for America is a Country wide example of Open Data whose fellowship program connects civic minded coders with local governments looking to make Government more transparent. These kind of innovations can get over looked, but as the United States gets more data and digital driven, more programs such as this will make a larger impact in how citizens see the impact of their municipal governments.