Digital Trust
We are dedicated to ensuring data collection in the public realm inspires resident trust, engagement, and delight.
The trust and engagement of Bostonians is fundamental to any successful data collection initiative. Our goal is to make the data the City collects work better for our residents by:
- experimenting with citizen science, art, and open data
- testing smart-city solutions built around privacy and equity, and
- setting a research agenda that prioritizes trust in data management.
We work with the Department of Innovation and Technology and university, nonprofit, and tech partners. We aim to learn how people consume data. We also want to understand how to use data to promote engagement with City Hall.
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Have questions? Contact:
New Urban Mechanics
Our guiding values
It's important to be intentional in the initiatives we undertake and the processes we design. We have taken care to follow a set guiding values. These values ensure that public interest is central to any technology we adopt.
- Reduce existing social, racial, economic, and spatial inequities
- Build constituent trust and increase accountability of planning decisions
- Steward the privacy, security, and right-sized collection of public data
- Use technology to enhance climate, community, and creative resilience
- Expand access and knowledge
- Engage people in ways that are useful, beautiful, and delightful
- Inform public dialogue on digital technology and data
- Ensure benefits become catalysts for social, artistic, and economic innovation
Projects
Beta Blocks
Exploring new approaches for community-led innovation in public spaces.
Boston Public Library Wi-Fi zone pop-ups
We’re expanding the critical role of Boston Public Library branches as community resource hubs.
Brandeis transparency app
Building the infrastructure to engage citizens on data collection in the public realm.
Building public data principles
We're building a set of principles. We want to ensure public data makes the City work better for residents, and we want your help.
Digital transparency in the public realm
We believe in starting a dialogue on data collection in the public realm.
Smart Streets
The City of Boston is using technology to re-imagine its streets.
Smart City Playbook
We drafted a living "playbook" to align with tech, academia, and the media on what makes a city smart.
TreeTect
Can we use very high-resolution satellite imagery to support and enhance our tree inventory?
Who's Involved:
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Have questions? Contact:
New Urban Mechanics
