Open Data Institute

The Open Data Institute (ODI) is a United Kingdom-based non-profit private company limited by guarantee, established in 2012 by World Wide Web inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee and data scientist Sir Nigel Shadbolt. Its purpose is to connect, equip and inspire people around the world to innovate with data, particularly by making data more accessible, usable and responsibly governed. The ODI operates at the intersection of research, policy, education, technology and practical delivery. It promotes open data as a public resource while also recognising that not all data can or should be openly published. Its work therefore addresses the wider data spectrum, including closed, shared and open data, with attention to licensing, privacy, security, ownership, stewardship and institutional governance. The institute’s definition of open data emphasises public accessibility, machine-readable formats and licences that permit reuse and redistribution for both commercial and non-commercial purposes. Its activities include in-house and online training, free educational materials, consultancy, research and development, policy advice, events, publications and software tools. Training ranges from introductory courses to sector-specific programmes for governments, companies and civil-society organisations. The ODI has also used lectures, workshops and demonstrations to build practical data literacy and to show how data can support innovation, accountability and improved public services. The institute has developed work around data infrastructure, finance and open banking, agriculture and nutrition, cities, global development, data standards and the social consequences of data use. Its research has explored how data creates value in business, how public bodies can improve publishing practices, and how technical standards can make datasets easier to discover, assess and reuse. Tools and concepts associated with the ODI include the Data Spectrum, Data Lexicon, Open Data Certificates, the Open Data Maturity Model, the Open Data Pathway and CSVlint. The ODI’s network model extends beyond its London headquarters. Members include businesses, start-ups, academic institutions, public bodies and individuals. Its start-up programme has offered coaching, mentoring, discounted learning, workspace and access to a professional network for companies building products or services with open data. ODI Nodes are locally hosted organisations that operate under the ODI Charter and connect local activity to a broader international network. Node formats have included pioneer, learning, community and story nodes. The institute has also supported international development and public-sector data programmes. Examples include peer learning for open-data leaders, work with the Open Data for Development Network, and assistance connected with Burkina Faso’s use of open election-results data. In the cultural field, its Data as Culture programme has commissioned artists to examine data as a material and to question its effects on people, society, business, the economy and the environment. The ODI combines grant funding with earned income from training, memberships, research and development, advisory services and events. It is not a listed company and does not operate as a conventional consumer brand. Instead, its brand is associated with open-data advocacy, evidence-led policy, data infrastructure, responsible data stewardship and practical support for organisations seeking to create public value from data.

The Open Data Institute was founded in 2012 by Tim Berners-Lee and Nigel Shadbolt to develop the skills, institutions and technical practices needed to make data useful and reusable. The institute emerged during a period when governments, researchers and businesses were increasingly publishing datasets online, but when problems of data quality, licensing, discoverability, privacy and long-term stewardship limited their value. Its founding mission was to connect, equip and inspire people to innovate with data. From its early years, the ODI combined public-interest advocacy with practical programmes. It delivered learning for people with different levels of technical experience, published research, convened events and worked with organisations seeking to publish or reuse data. Its Friday lunchtime lectures became a recurring forum for discussing data communication, policy and application. The institute also developed a membership network for companies, start-ups, academic bodies and individuals interested in data-driven innovation. A major strand of the ODI’s work has been the idea that open data depends on infrastructure and governance, not simply publication. In 2015, it helped broaden the international discussion through work on data infrastructure and ownership, asking who controls datasets and systems that are essential to society. The Data Spectrum and Data Lexicon provided accessible ways to distinguish closed, shared and open data and to discuss the permissions and responsibilities attached to each category. The institute expanded into sector and thematic programmes. In finance, it contributed to discussions about open banking, APIs, competition and consumer control over transactional data. In agriculture and nutrition, it investigated how open data could support food production, distribution and consumption. Its open-cities work addressed urban planning and smart-city practice. Its global-development activity supported governments and data leaders, including peer-learning initiatives and work connected with Burkina Faso’s open election-results programme. The ODI also invested in technical implementation. ODI Labs created publishing tools, standards and assessment methods, including Open Data Certificates, the Open Data Maturity Model, the Open Data Pathway and CSVlint. European collaborative projects examined data platforms, multilingual catalogue metadata, open-data monitoring and the implementation of public-sector data policies. These projects reflected the ODI’s broader aim of making data easier to find, understand, assess and reuse. Alongside policy and technology, the institute treated data as a cultural and social question. Through its Data as Culture programme, it commissioned artists to explore data’s effects and to challenge assumptions about what data is and how it shapes people, economies, environments and institutions. The ODI’s research and showcase work similarly sought evidence of economic, social and environmental benefits rather than treating openness as an end in itself. The organisation’s operating model has combined public support with earned income. Early public funding included a UK Technology Strategy Board commitment announced in 2012, while income has also come from training, membership, research and development, advisory services and events. The ODI has used this blended model to maintain a non-profit mission while delivering commercial and public-sector services. Its continuing network of members, start-ups, collaborators and nodes gives the institute an international reach while its headquarters remains in London.

• 2015

  Data infrastructure debate expanded

  [1]Open Data Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The ODI used a discussion paper on data ownership and stewardship to contribute to an international debate about data infrastructure.

• 2015

  ODI network surpassed 1,300 members

  [1]Open Data Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The institute reported a network of more than 1,300 organisations and individuals and introduced student membership.

• 2015

  Burkina Faso election-data collaboration

  [1]Open Data Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The ODI worked with Burkina Faso’s open-data initiative on access to real-time election-results information.

• 2013

  Peer-to-peer lending research published

  [1]Open Data Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The ODI’s “Show me the money” work examined regional lending patterns in the UK peer-to-peer lending market.

• 2012

  Institute founded

  [1]Open Data Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  Tim Berners-Lee and Nigel Shadbolt established the Open Data Institute in the United Kingdom to advance innovation and public value through open data.

• 2012

  Initial public funding pledged

  [1]Open Data Instituteen.wikipedia.org

  The UK Technology Strategy Board pledged core public funding to support the institute during its initial five-year development period.

A mission-driven data institute combining policy research, technical standards, education and advisory work to advance open and responsible data use.

• Education and training

  ODI Learning

  A programme of free and paid-for online and in-house courses covering the theory and practice of publishing, governing and reusing data. Offerings range from introductory material to courses tailored to particular sectors and organisational needs.

• Data assessment tool

  Open Data Certificates

  A framework and tool for assessing whether a dataset has been published in a way that supports sustainable, trustworthy and reusable access. It helps publishers communicate qualities such as licensing, format, documentation and support.

• Data governance framework

  Data Spectrum and Data Lexicon

  Conceptual resources that help organisations describe the differences between closed, shared and open data. They provide common language for discussing access rights, licences, reuse, responsibilities and the governance of data assets.

• Open-data software

  CSVlint

  A validator associated with ODI Labs that checks comma-separated value files and supports better-quality publication and reuse of tabular open data.

• Entrepreneurship programme

  ODI Startup programme

  A support programme for start-ups developing businesses or products that use open data. Support has included coaching, mentoring, workspace access, discounted training and connections to the wider ODI network.

• 2015Data as Culture: Data Anthropologies

  United Kingdom · International cultural and technology community

  The Data as Culture art programme examined the social and cultural implications of data. The 2015–2016 “Data Anthropologies” theme placed people at the centre of emerging data environments and commissioned artists to create data-driven work.

  Outcome. The programme produced exhibitions and commissioned works that encouraged public discussion about data, identity, technology and society.

  Source
• 2015Open Data Leaders Network

  International

  As part of the Open Data for Development Network, the ODI helped create a peer-learning space for government and civil-society leaders working on open-data policy and implementation.

  Outcome. The network supported exchange of experience and practical approaches among open-data leaders in different countries.

  Source

• 2015

  Frame data as infrastructure requiring governanceStrategy

  Background

  Growing reliance on data raised questions about ownership, stewardship, access and the resilience of systems that underpin public and economic life.

  Action taken

  The ODI published discussion work on data infrastructure and developed language and frameworks for describing different access and reuse models.

  Aftermath

  The institute strengthened its positioning around responsible data stewardship rather than treating open publication as the only relevant policy issue.

  Source

• 2012

  Adopt a blended grant-and-income operating modelStrategy

  Background

  The institute needed to pursue a non-profit public-interest mission while developing durable organisational capacity and delivering practical services.

  Action taken

  The ODI combined core public funding with income from training, membership, research and development, advisory work and events.

  Aftermath

  This model enabled the institute to operate across research, education, policy and consulting while remaining a non-profit company limited by guarantee.

  Source

1. 1Open Data Instituteen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Open Data Institute official websitetheodi.org