Who we are

School of Data is a global network committed to advancing data literacy in civil society. Information that directly impact people’s lives is increasingly accessible but civil society is falling behind in making effective use of it. Through our global network of data literacy practitioners and trainers, School of Data seeks to address this data skills gaps in order to amplify the messages of civil society through the use of data. We level the playing field by ensuring that civil society organisations and newsrooms have the knowledge, resources and tools they need to participate fully in the information age.

School of Data is a network of data literacy practitioners composed of organisations and individuals. Together, we implement an array of data literacy programmes in our respective countries and regions. Members of School of Data network work to support civil society organizations (CSOs), journalists, and citizens to engage with and use data in their efforts to create better, more equitable and more sustainable societies. Over the past four years, School of Data has succeeded in developing and sustaining a thriving network of data literacy practitioners across Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa.

Our network includes 13 organisations across the world and a total of 101 active individuals, all of whom contribute to School of Data mission and programmes. We have trained over 6,500 people through our workshops and community events. We have mentored dozens of organisations to become tech savvy and data-driven. Our flagship initiatives, the School of Data Fellowship Programme, was piloted in 2013 and has now successfully supported 31 Fellows in 25 countries to become effective data literacy trainers and to provide long-term data capacity building in their communities. The Fellowship programme specifically run in partnership with organisations in our network and beyond: SocialTIC and Internews in Latin America, the Natural Resource Governance Institute and OD4D in Africa, The Engine Room in Eastern Europe.

Our methodologies and approach for delivering hands-on data training and data literacy skills, such as the data pipeline and the data expedition, have now been replicated in various formats by organisations around the world.

These successes are due to the passionate dedication of the members of the School of Data network who have been adopting, adapting and delivering School of Data training in their local communities while simultaneously feeding back their learnings and materials to be reused by larger network. The governance structure of School of Data reflects this commitment of our network members, who have elected our second Steering Committee tasked of overseeing the strategy of the network.

The coordination team

Cédric Lombion

Programme Lead

Cédric is the Data and Innovation Lead at the Open Knowledge Foundation and the main coordinator of the School of Data network. He got involved in the network in 2014, when he kickstarted School of Data activities in France. Today he works with network members to include them in training projects and disseminate new methods, resources and content.

Ben Hur Pintor

Data Training Lead

Ben Hur is a free and open stuff advocate based in The Philippines who works at the intersections of the openness, data, development, and geospatial fields. He is an alumnus of the School of Data Fellowship and Data Expert Programme and has provided training, support, and consulting services on data literacy and free and open source software for geospatial (FOSS4G) applications to individuals, private corporations, and organizations over the years.

He supports the open data and open mapping communities in the Philippines as an individual and through BNHR, his consultancy service, and SmartCT, an open data and citizen-centric non-profit that he is part of.

 

Member Organisations

Founding Member

Open Knowledge International

Country: United Kingdom

Region covered: International

Audiences: Citizens, civil servants, NGOs

Website: okfn.org

 

Asia

School of Data Kyrgyzstan

Country: Kyrgyzstan

Region covered: Kyrgyzstan

Audiences: Journalists, civil society

 

Africa

OpenUp

Country: South Africa

Region covered: South Africa

Audiences: CSOs, media, citizens, government

Website: openup.org.za

 

Connected Development

Country: Nigeria

Region covered: Nigeria

Audiences: Rural communities, journalists (broadcast and print)

Website: connecteddevelopment.org

 

Americas and the Caribbean

Caribbean Open Institute

Country: Jamaica

Region covered: Caribbean

Audiences: Journalists, civil society organizations, businesses

Website: caribbeanopeninstitute.org

 

Escola de dados

Country: Brazil

Region covered: Brazil

Audiences: Journalists, civil society organizations, students

Website: escoladedados.org

 

Fundacion Conocimiento Abierto

Country: Argentina

Region covered: Argentina

Audiences: Journalists, civil society organizations, governments

Website: conocimientoabierto.org

 

SocialTIC

Country: Mexico

Region covered: Latin America

Audiences: Activists, journalists, civil society organizations

Website: socialtic.org

 

Europe

School of Data Turkey

Country: Turkey

Region covered: Turkey and Turkish-speaking countries

Audiences: Disenfranchised countryside communities, disadvantaged groups, journalism students

Website: avvg.org.tr

 

School of Data Latvia

Country: Latvia

Region covered: Latvia

Audiences: Journalists

Website: lv.schoolofdata.org/

 

Metamorphosis Foundation

Country: Macedonia

Region covered: South East Europe

Audiences: NGOs, media

Website: schoolofdata.metamorphosis.org.mk/

 

Open Knowledge Foundation Deutschland

Country: Germany

Region covered: Germany

Audiences: NGOs, hackers, government officials

Website: https://okfn.de/

 

Open Knowledge France

Country: France

Region covered: France

Audiences: Urban citizens, civil servants, CSOs, school-age children

Website: ecoledesdonnees.org

 

Open Knowledge Greece

Country: Greece

Region covered: Greece

Audiences: Journalists, students

Website: schoolofdata.okfn.gr

 

OpenData.ch

Country: Switzerland

Region covered: Switzerland

Audiences: Governments, administration, municipalities

Website: Opendata.ch