CODS16 Call for Content
CODS16 Call for Content
2016 Canadian Open Data Summit
Saint John, New Brunswick – April 28, 2016
Abstract Deadline: February 15, 2016
Prime Minister Trudeau stated in his first speech from the throne: “We have committed to set a higher bar for openness and transparency in government. It is time to shine more light on government to ensure it remains focused on the people it serves. Government and its information should be open by default.” The new Canadian Government has committed to “accelerate and expand open data initiatives and make government data available digitally, so that Canadians can easily access and use it” while improving “the quality of publicly available data in Canada.”
Open data will play a vital role in policy-making, research, and citizen engagement. U.S. President Barack Obama famously stated in his Open Government Directive: “The challenges we face today — from saving our planet to ending poverty — are simply too big for government to solve alone. We need all hands on deck.” There is a growing movement in Canada to open government: to advance citizen engagement and create a more collaborative democracy, while making data open to drive evidence-based decision-making and to enhance programs and services. Moving forward, open data will play a vital role in solving complex problems by informing future policy-making, research, and citizen engagement. We are therefore seeking stories and experiences from all sectors that address some of Canada’s most pressing challenges using open data.
The Canadian Open Data Summit on April 28, 2016 is the annual event bringing together the key players involved in this national movement. This year, the event will be held in Saint John, New Brunswick and will be hosted by the New Brunswick Social Policy Research Network and nb+ in partnership with the Canadian open data community.
We seek abstracts for presentations on projects that have contributed to (or show promise of) transforming our institutions, our programs and our services, and session that seek to address any of the following:
– What are the conditions and characteristics of dynamic and innovative open data communities?
– What are the current challenges and solutions for effective inter-jurisdictional communication, cooperation, and standardisation?
– Which mechanisms are better suited to stimulate innovation and effective connections between funders, governments, civil society groups, and the private sector?
– How can we prioritise and accelerate the availability of up-to-date, structured, and interoperable open data?
Four types of contributions are suggested:
1) Panel Discussion
2) Lightning Talk Presentation (presentation of 5-7 minutes)
3) Workshop
4) Poster
We welcome abstract submissions (maximum 250 words) outlining your proposed panel, presentation, workshop, or poster. Please indicate your selection in the title of your abstract.
Proponents of accepted abstracts will be invited to present during the Summit. Those proposing a panel will be asked to indicate a theme and propose a title for the panel. Those proposing a presentation will be invited to give a lightning talk (5-7 minutes). Proponents of accepted workshops will be asked to prepare a more detailed outline for the workshop. Proponents of accepted posters will be asked to prepare their full poster (37” X 41”) for the Summit.
All presentations, panels and workshops will be filmed and included online on the Canadian Open Data Summit website. All presenters must register for the Summit; costs are not covered (registration and payment at the early-bird rate can be made after acceptance notification has been received).
Notifications will be ongoing during the review process – however, an agenda will not be decided until after the final deadline for submissions.
Submission Guidelines
Please email your submission to info@rrps-nb-sprn.ca, in the subject line of the email include: 2016 Canadian Open Data Summit – Abstract Submission
Deadline : February 15, 2016
Please include:
– Title of your proposed session
– Indication of either panel; presentation, workshop or poster
– Abstract of up to 250 words
– Presenting Author Name and Email
– Name and affiliation for all authors (including presenting author).
We will contact you if we require further information.
Canadian Open Data Summit 2016
The Open Data Movement is gaining momentum and its rise is timely, with institutions nation-wide exploring the burgeoning area of smart governance. As a movement we have amply demonstrated the ‘Why’ of Open Data. Now is the time to collectively agree on and actualize the ‘How’. CODS 2016 will identify and bridge gaps in the Open Data ecosystem, and explore the ‘How’ of unleashing shared value between sectors, institutions, municipalities, and communities. CODS 2016 is about putting rubber to the road.
The hosting of CODS 2016 by New Brunswick partners is particularly timely given the provincial government’s and NB IT sector’s shared strategy to develop and launch an Open Data portal to stimulate the development of service delivery apps by the private sector and facilitate citizen engagement in policy development. The conference host organizations and our partners all recognize that we have an untapped resource to solve big problems, one that will play a vital role in policy-making, research, economic development and citizen engagement, and we are all primed – both to share current activities and to learn how to share even better.
CODS 2016 is the national conversation at which we will promote data accessibility and collaboration. Drawing from host NB-SPRN’s mission, and complemented by our experience fostering trust across sectors, we will highlight the How of free (or low-cost), machine-readable, accessible data, and emphasize the cross-sectoral interaction needed to overcome the existing barriers that currently prevent the value of Open Data from being fully realized.
The main themes to be explored at CODS and some potential sub-themes include:
Open Data for Society
Funding and sustaining community-based open data initiatives
Open Data and Social Inclusion
Building Active and Diverse Ecosystems
Open Data for Transparency and Accountability
Open Data for Government
Strategies for engagement and fostering an open data culture within local governments
Engaging citizens in the dialogue of open data – best practices
Open Data for community intermediaries
Open Data for Business
Engaging the Tech Industry to facilitate tools and education
Engaging the business community for value
Removing Barriers for All
This theme addresses barriers to open data wherever they exist, whether they require making open data more discoverable by citizens, more effective within governments, more usable by companies, or otherwise. Ideas for content include:
The role of open data standards in lowering barriers to using and remixing data
Data visualization techniques / software applications
Cultural barriers to open data that limit its potential
Addressing mismatch between community problems and available datasets
In the end, a successful CODS 2016 will lead to more data being made available from all data owners, data that is easier to consume, with programs and partners in place to drive its use, and standards and techniques to facilitate the innovation that access to cross-sectoral data will inevitably spark.
