Description

The ultimate aim is to use data as a vehicle for meaningful communication, engagement, and problem solving with Durham residents. To do this, we propose adopting an emerging trend in research called “stats-in-action” that brings a community participatory process to data analysis.  Through such an approach, a cross agency public safety team would meet with residents to share data and ask for their assistance in interpreting it, thinking through how and where it is presented (online v. in-person, centralized resource v. multiple resources, multiple languages, data guides and documentation, etc.), and in identifying other questions of interest they would like to consider answering using data. This approach can help the city create data dashboards that are more intuitive to Durham residents that increase their understanding of the challenges facing our city and current efforts underway to address them. The data would likely inspire questions, thoughts, and ideas on the part of community members. This collaborative process would, then, lead to a further round of data analysis—which we rename “data-in-action"—and further conversations, coupled with improved data dashboards. This design would require an ongoing commitment in terms of staff time and creativity.