The last two years have been challenging for civil society organisations across the UK. Like many not-for-profits, we’ve watched respected organisations close their doors as funding landscapes shifted dramatically—grant funding reduced, philanthropic support became harder to access, and many traditional income streams simply dried up. Open Data Manchester hasn’t been immune to these pressures. We
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Oct
Oct
Over the past few months, we’ve been developing new AI literacy resources as part of our Data For Communities programme. Our aim is to create workshops that help people understand what AI can and can’t do, gain hands-on experience, and making their own informed choices about choosing to using it, or choosing not to. Drawing
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Oct
Oct
Last month I was lucky to attend at csv,conf,v9 in Bologna, where I gave a talk on our Data For Communities programme. A gathering of the community data world, it was great to connect with people doing similar work from all over the globe and reminded me by this work matters. Finding data in the
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Oct
Oct
Two weeks ago, I was fortunate to attend the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Global Summit in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Euskadi, Spain as part of the UK delegation—a mix of government and civil society representatives working to promote transparent, participatory, inclusive and accountable governance. The summit is a biannual gathering bringing together over 3,000 people from 74 countries
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Sep
Sep
The LCR Data Community held its fourth gathering on Thursday 18 September at DoES Liverpool, bringing together around 25 data professionals from across the Liverpool City Region for our first in-person event since May. We structured the morning around four discussion tables, each focusing on a different aspect of data practice. Participants were free to
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Aug
Aug
Help us test our new workshop series We’re launching a new three-part workshop series to help people navigate AI with confidence and clarity, and we need your help to make it as useful as possible. About the workshops In these sessions there are no right or wrong answers, and we’re not here to convince you
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Aug
Aug
The LCR Data Community of practice held its third gathering on Thursday 10 July, bringing together around 20 data profressionbals for an online exploration of AI transparency and practical data solutions. Community charter of data and AI Emily Rempel from the Civic Data Cooperative presented the recently published Liverpool City Region Community Charter on Data
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Jul
Jul
Over the years ODM has researched into the correlation between ward-level democracy and deprivation to understand if it is an indicator of healthy democratic representation, and if over time, reveals a picture of the shifting demographic patterns within local democratic representation. The research used data from the May 2024 local elections, and analysis reveals a
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Jul
Jul
We often get asked why Open Data Manchester runs Joy Diversion and Free Range events when they don’t seem directly related to our core data work. The answer? They’re essential to it. Since 2018, we’ve been exploring how people relate to the places where they live, work and play—reframing these relationships through experience, interpretation and
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Jun
Jun
Building connections across Liverpool City Region’s diverse data ecosystem Open Data Manchester has been working with the Civic Data Cooperative at the University of Liverpool to explore how a data community of practice might serve the Liverpool City Region. Through extensive conversations with individuals and organisations across the region, including with the public sector, emergency