Publish overview of managed data

The problem

There is often a ‘catch 22’ situation when identifying data for release. The public sector asks the user community what data they would like and they will prioritise this for release. However, the user community are often not aware of what exists and therefore cannot respond meaningfully. Therefore an overview of datasets managed by an organisation should be published.

The solution

CKAN: This best practice is very similar to an inventory, in which CKAN, developed by Open Knowledge Labs, or a CKAN-like tool could be used. It should be noted that this could also be satisfied with a spreadsheet. The public sector, alongside Open Knowledge International and the Network, could work to involve the CKAN community with this best practice and the Share PSI best practices.

Create a public, comprehensive list of all information holdings, Open Data Policy Guidelines, Sunlight Foundation: This resource advocates for the creation of an inventory of already available information, in line with the Share PSI best practice.

How to open data, Open Data Handbook: This resource intended for government audiences also emphasizes the value of publishing data holdings and mentions CKAN as a potential tool to implement this recommendation.