Cities want to do new and exciting things with their data, and now they’re getting some extra help to do just that.
Bloomberg Philanthropies announced on April 20 the launch of What Works Cities, a $42 million, three-year initiative that will assist mid-sized American cities in developing data projects that improve life for their residents. The initiative now seeks 100 cities with populations between 100,000 and 1 million residents to receive guidance from program partners like The Behavioural Insights Team, Harvard Kennedy School of Government Performance Lab, Johns Hopkins University’s new Center for Government Excellence, Results for America and the Sunlight Foundation.
“While cities are working to meet new challenges with limited resources, they have access to more data than ever – and they are increasingly using it to improve people’s lives,” Michael Bloomberg said in a press release. “We’ll help them build on their progress, and help even more cities take steps to put data to work. What works? That’s a question that every city leader should ask – and we want to help them find answers.”