The first dedicated educational infrastructure of its kind, the Clinic will support grassroots data empowerment movements globally and enable students to gain hands-on experience in data empowerment practices.
On Thursday, 23 October, the Centre for Data Futures brought together practitioners, experts, students, researchers, funders and policymakers at King's to open up conversations about what it takes to build data empowerment structures at the launch of the groundbreaking Data Empowerment Clinic.
The Data Empowerment Clinic, supported by funding from The Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, has been designed as a collaborative 'think-and-do' space, equipping students from disciplines across King's to gain hands-on experience in data empowerment practices.
The Clinic is the first dedicated educational infrastructure of its kind to support grassroots data empowerment movements globally and seeks to address the 'missing profession of the 21st Century' - data stewards - independent professionals who act on behalf of a community.
At the heart of the Clinic's vision is a commitment to helping communities harness the power of their data for collective benefit. This could mean enabling neighbourhood groups to use data to drive environmental change - tackling issues like poor water quality, air pollution, or advancing conservation efforts. It could also involve supporting patients in using their health data to contribute to research, accelerate the development of new treatments, and improve patient outcomes.
Experts and community partners will work alongside students to support organisations across sectors - including education, health and the creative industries - in tackling real-world challenges at the intersection of law, technology and governance.
Featuring keynotes from Sir Nigel Shadbolt (Principal of Jesus College, University of Oxford and co-founder, and chairman of the Open Data Institute) and Vilas Dhar (President of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation), the event launched the Clinic's vision, spotlighted early partner case studies, and opened the floor to conversations about what it takes to build data empowerment structures amid the challenges presented by ever-increasing amounts of data and a complex data ecosystem.
Participants also had the opportunity to take part in teach-ins and other interactive sessions during the day and were encouraged to consider and challenge the ideas put to them throughout the event.
Right now, data flows to those with the most resources and technical capacity. Communities are left out of decisions that fundamentally shape their lives. The Data Empowerment Clinic challenges this by training a new generation of data stewards-professionals who can help communities become architects of their data-driven futures, not just subjects of other people's systems.
Professor Sylvie Delacroix, Director of the Centre for Data Futures and Inaugural Jeff Price Chair in Digital Law
Participants also had the opportunity to take part in teach-ins and other interactive sessions during the day and were encouraged to consider and challenge the ideas put to them throughout the event.
In order to demystify data and build a place for collective action, the event also launched 'Skilling for Data Empowerment', a modular learning experience made up of accessible materials designed for students and practitioners on ethical and participatory data practices, developed in partnership with the Mozilla Foundation.
The materials are designed to equip academics, practitioners, and students with the tools to critically and practically engage with data to help advance justice, autonomy, and collective benefit.
Through the materials, users will learn how to:
- Understand what data empowerment means and why it matters for their work
- Explore how to enable meaningful participation at the point of data generation
- Identify operational, legal, technical, and ecosystem needs for effective support
- Discover tools to translate data empowerment concepts into practice
- Contextualise insights across geographies and use cases
The course fills a critical gap by equipping students with the skills needed to act as 'data stewards' -the missing profession of the 21st Century- independently representing (and negotiating on behalf of) groups keen to leverage their data to achieve a variety of aims.
We're living in a status quo where technologies are imposed upon us rather than shaped with us. The Data Empowerment Clinic is changing that by training data stewards and building peer learning networks where communities can exchange knowledge and reclaim power through their data. If you're committed to this vision, join us in this movement.
Innovation Director, Data Empowerment Clinic, Centre for Data Futures
