Social Impact Data Commons Technical Review

The University of Virginia’s Social and Decision Analytics Division (SDAD) has partnered with the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth to build a Social Impact Data Commons capable of tracking social impact across the Washington DC metropolitan region over time. A "data commons" is an open knowledge repository that co-locates data from a variety of sources, builds and curates data insights, and provides tools for tracking issue over time and geography. A data commons enables governments and community stakeholders to continuously learn from and leverage their own data. SDAD and Mastercard have undertaken this project with the shared vision to use data to inform equitable growth and sustainable recovery from social challenges. SDAD initiated a technical review of the data architecture and data management processes we have developed for the Social Impact Data Commons. The technical review served to advance several key aspects of the project, including furthering researcher engagement in the Social Impact Data Commons and addressing useability, iteration, and refinement. The consensus from the reviewers was that the data commons is coming together nicely, good design choices have been made, and the research is on track to meet the project goals.

Thurston, J., Schroeder, A., Linehan, K., & Iserman, M. (2022). Social Impact Data Commons technical review. Proceedings of the Biocomplexity Institute, Technical Report. #BI‐2022‐448. University of Virginia. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18130/1han-1526.