Data Re-Use and Collaboration for Public Value
Data stewards are essential for accelerating the re-use of data for the public interest. This course aims to empower individuals or teams within data-holding and data-using organizations to proactively initiate, facilitate and coordinate data collaboratives.
Five-day intensive course from May 12 to 16, 2025
In-person participation in Zurich and Berne
Public and private sector, civil society and academia
Final presentation showcasing participants’ data re-use project
Are you interested in creating an impact with the data your organisation holds?
Do you have access to (open) data but don’t know how to use it?
Do you want to use data to accelerate partnerships & collaboration for public value?
The Data Tank, in collaboration with The GovLab, Swiss Data Alliance and Opendata.ch are bringing the Data Stewards Intensive Course to Switzerland. This course is an immersive learning program combined with external data domain field visits & guided by expert talks.
The course intends to train the current & future data stewards with the knowledge and skills that are needed to implement and develop responsible data re-use practices. Such practices ensure ethical and legal compliance, all while identifying and fostering data collaboration opportunities that increase the impact of data.
Moreover, participants receive coaching to develop a data re-use strategy and have the chance to network with their peers, coaches, and professors. The program also combines field visits to leading data industry institutions for the participants to be able to see how data-driven initiatives are implemented in practice.
By the end of the program, these future data stewards comprehend how to identify and develop open data and data re-use initiatives and balance the opportunities and risks related to them. They also get added to the Data Stewards Alumni group consisting of 120+ alumni from all over the world. The group is managed by The Governance Lab & The Data Tank.
Course overview
Monday to Wednesday (12 to 14 May, 2025) will take place in Zurich.
Thursday and Friday (15 and 16 May, 2025) will take place in Berne.
For questions regarding the course, contact us via email or call +41 31 848 57 31.
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What is the problem you seek to solve?
Do you need to scope out the domain using a topic map?
Are there certain issues you ought to prioritize based on their need, externalities and feasibility?
What is the guiding question leading this project?
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What are the expertise and capacity needs for this project?
What is the minimal amount of data needed to make progress towards answering the question?
What are the different data sources available for this project?
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What is this project’s value to society?
What is the return on investment of this project?
Do the benefits of this project outweigh the costs?
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What are the risks of this project across the Data Lifecycle?
What are the potential externalities (including environmental externalities) of this project?
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How is the data going to flow between the project partners?
What does a fit-for-purpose collaborative model look like?
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What are the 4 Ps of data governance for this project?
Who is going to govern this project and how?
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What data standards will improve the interoperability of the data?
How can the data be handled to balance privacy with efficiency?
Who can access and re-use the data?
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What are the ethical implications of this project?
Do you need to establish a social license for this project?
How can you assess and mitigate the environmental impact of your project?
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How will you capture the impact and success of this project?
How will you know when to end this project?
Main Lecturer:
Stefaan G. Verhulst
Local guest lecturers to be announced soon!
Dr. Stefaan G. Verhulst is an expert in using data and technology for social impact. He is the Co-Founder of several research organizations including the Governance Laboratory (GovLab) at New York University, which focuses on using advances in science and technology to improve decision-making and problem-solving. He is also the Editor-in-Chief of the open-access journal Data & Policy and has served as a member of several expert groups on data and technology, including the High-Level Expert Group to the European Commission on Business-to-Government Data Sharing and the Expert Group to Eurostat on using Private Sector data for Official Statistics.
Stefaan has been recognized as one of the 10 Most Influential Academics in Digital Government globally. He has published extensively on these topics, including several books, and has been invited to speak at international conferences, including TED and the UN World Data Forum. He is asked regularly to provide counsel on data stewardship to a variety of public and private organizations.
Requirements
Letter of support
Potential participants must present a letter of support from a representative in their organization, explaining how their current position and mandate relates to this course. Additionally, participants must share an initial data reuse strategy to develop over the course (max. 250 words) and their current CV. These should be uploaded in the call for application section at the bottom of this page.
Time Commitment
This course consists of 5 full days of learning sessions. All participants are expected to be active participants in the course to support peer learning and maximize the experience with guest faculty and field visits..
Assignments
Assignments will be shared daily and are designed to further stimulate participants’ progress in the development of their data re-use strategy. Assignments are not expected to take more than 30 minutes daily to complete.
Data Re-Use Strategy
Course participants will develop a data re-use strategy to help their organizations improve existing practices or launch new initiatives for the public good. When applying, participants should already have an initial idea of their strategy, as this will be addressed in the application form. During and after the course, participants will refine their strategies, present them during pitch sessions, and submit a written version to course organizers. They will receive detailed feedback and ongoing support to help scale and implement their strategies effectively.
Language
The course and all affiliated programming take place in English; course participants are expected to have proficient English language skills to ensure effective communication, participation in discussions, and comprehension of course materials. Some guest lectures will be in German or French, with ressources/slides available in English.
Costs
The course requires a symbolic participation fee of CHF 800, which covers about a quarter of the actual costs. Participants from the non-profit sector can join for a reduced fee of CHF 100.
Apply now!
If you are unsure or have questions regarding the course, we are happy to help! You can contact us via email or call us at +41 31 848 57 31.
«The course helped me to bootstrap our data-sharing project into a more cohesive, real-world solution to tackle collaboration among organizations.»
Jorge Alvarado
Chief Technology Officer at Beyond Civic
and Data Stewards Alum
«The role of data stewards is crucial for data spaces to succeed in Switzerland. This course is key.»
André Golliez
President of the Swiss Data Alliance and Data Stewards Alum
«The Data Stewards Intensive Course is highly recommended. In addition to the wealth of inspiring content, case studies and site visits are used to create practical references. I can use the knowledge very well when planning and structuring new research projects.»
Katharina König
Scientific Researcher at Werner Felber Institut and Data Stewards Alum
