Peter Wells@peterkwellstheODI.org

Who are the Open Data Institute?

We connect, equip and inspire people around the world to innovate with data.

The ODI node network operates in 20 countries across six continents.

Data sits on a spectrum

First draft

Data is infrastructure

Roads help us navigate to a location.

Data helps us make a decision.

Open data and FOI laws.

Open data and FOI laws:

complementary and necessary.

Open data and FOI provide a

natural balance between the

proactive and reactive release

of information.

FOI enables citizens to request

information in relation to

particular areas of current

public interest, and improve

their sense of civic

engagement and participation.

FOI allows civil society and

business to request information

to investigate opportunities for

innovation or to support their

current work.

FOI promotes the UK’s position

as an open and transparent

place to do business.

FOI provides a mechanism for

access to information held by

government where the

community interested in that

information is too small to

justify its continuing release

and maintenance as open

data.

FOI can help public sector

bodies identify information and

data that may have potential

value if published openly.

A sustainable data economy

needs both open data and FOI.

Open data can help inform the

FOI Commission’s work.

Open data is an important

mechanism for transparency

and data innovation, but open

data will never make FOI laws

redundant.

Peter Wells@peterkwells

theODI.org