Data transparency effort -- successful in UK -- to be tested in US

A team of American transparency advocates will test a British model for open data standards in the United States, with $250,000 from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Led by open data pioneer Waldo Jaquith, the US team will work with the UK-based Open Data Institute to replicate its model and determine its effectiveness stateside. The institute’s goal is to encourage governments and businesses to adopt open data standards as a way to promote economic growth, innovation and social change. The US team, for example, will connect government agencies, businesses and nonprofits with experts and vendors who can help them be more transparent. The effort will also help these organizations overcome the barriers preventing them from sharing their data, by hosting convenings and creating open source projects that can fill the gaps. The US team is guided by an advisory board consisting of Aneesh Chopra, former U.S. chief technology officer, Daniel X. O’Neil, executive director of the Smart Chicago Collaborative, and Max Ogden, a noted open data developer and alumnus of Code for America.