Mayor de Blasio Announces Launch of The NYC Recovery Data Partnership With Open Call for Data

July 23, 2020

Initial cohort includes LinkedIn, StreetEasy, Foursquare and more; City invites community, non-profit, and private organizations to join partnership to inform Covid-19 recovery efforts

NEW YORK—Mayor Bill de Blasio today announced the NYC Recovery Data Partnership and called on community, non-profit, and private organizations to share data with the City to aid in Covid-19 response and recovery efforts. The Partnership will be a first-of-its-kind effort for the City, centered on principles of privacy, fairness, accountability, and transparency. Partner organizations are providing data free-of-charge to bolster understanding of how New Yorkers have been impacted by Covid-19, and will help to inform programmatic and policy decisions for an equitable recovery.

"As we recover from COVID-19 and build a fairer city, it's essential that we make decisions based in data, facts, and an understanding of the lived experiences of all New Yorkers," said Mayor Bill de Blasio. "That's why we're launching the NYC Recovery Data Partnership to harness data from partner organizations that will help us identify and support local industries and communities that are most in need.  I call on other civic-minded organizations to join the Recovery Data Partnership as a way to contribute to the City's recovery efforts."

The Recovery Data Partnership will be chaired by the Mayor’s Office of Policy and Planning, the Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics, and the Mayor’s Office of Operations, with counsel from the City’s Chief Privacy Officer.

The City takes protecting and being a custodian of New Yorkers’ information very seriously. All partners have agreed to adhere to City privacy and confidentiality guidelines. The Recovery Data Partnership team will review all proposed City uses of data, and will make information about how this data is being used available to New Yorkers.

The founding cohort of the NYC Recovery Data Partnership includes:

“We can’t do this alone – the Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics knows firsthand that high frequency data and insights are pivotal for Covid-19 crisis response and recovery,” said Kelly Jin, NYC Chief Analytics Officer and Director of the Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics. “Better data makes for better analysis, and this economic and community data will empower our analysts and policymakers as NYC continues to recover. Thank you to all of the partner organizations that have agreed to share data already, and I look forward to welcoming more partners in the months to come.”

“I am proud that the Mayor's Office of Operations is providing legal, privacy, and data analytics expertise to the Recovery Data Partnership. Building on our strong past data sharing and standards work with agencies, the partnership will help power an equitable recovery by providing City analysts with data that reflects the diverse experiences of New Yorkers while protecting individual privacy. I look forward to seeing innovative ways that City agencies will use partner data,” said Jeff Thamkittikasem, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Operations.

“The Recovery Data Partnership will provide the City with essential indicators of the economic well-being of our communities,” said Dominic Williams, the Chief Policy Advisor and Director of the Mayor’s Office of Policy and Planning. “The insights we derive from the data shared by partners will be used to strengthen the City’s recovery initiatives and inform our long-term planning.”

“In this critical time we are excited and grateful to have the support of community, non-profit and private organizations willing and able to share their data in order to support the City's COVID-19 recovery efforts, and continue providing the programs, benefits and services that New Yorkers need. As the City’s Chief Privacy Officer, I know data can be a powerful tool as we work to inform fair and equitable programs through this initiative – and of paramount importance, our privacy protection values have been made an integral part of the Partnership's design. Our response and recovery efforts will be strengthened as we learn more about the lived experiences of New York residents during this time while protecting their privacy and building public trust through transparency and accountability," said Laura Negrón, Chief Privacy Officer.

The goal of the Recovery Data Partnership is to responsibly build a repository of data to help serve communities most in need, with the knowledge that new potential uses of data to support Covid-19 response and recovery will continue to emerge over time. The types of data being shared by the initial cohort include:

• Weekly real estate market metrics from StreetEasy, Zillow Group's NYC brand
• Real-time measures of hiring activity from LinkedIn
• Rates of illness from aggregated smart thermometer readings from Kinsa
• Sociodemographic information about New Yorkers seeking personal bankruptcy services from Upsolve
• Foot traffic data aggregated by neighborhood and business type from Foursquare

The City is particularly interested in data in the categories below that reflect communities and industries that have been acutely impacted by the pandemic or are traditionally underrepresented in data:

To support the Recovery Data Partnership, the City has also engaged advisors who are data experts and practitioners from academic institutions and community-based organizations to draw on their expertise to provide input on potential data uses. A list of these advisors is available at nyc.gov/recoverydata.

“New Yorkers have come together throughout the Covid-19 pandemic to support one another, highlighting yet again that the City is made stronger through collaboration,” said Adrienne Schmoeker, Deputy Chief Analytics Officer, and Director of Civic Engagement and Strategy, for the Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics. “The City has shared data with New Yorkers for over a decade via the NYC Open Data program, and we're excited to announce the NYC Recovery Data Partnership as a new program for data collaboration with NYC communities, companies, and organizations to inform Covid-19 recovery efforts powered by NYC data.”

“It is through collaboration that society accomplishes its grandest goals and solves its hardest challenges. The NYC Recovery Data Partnership exemplifies how industry and government can combine their unique strengths to collaboratively respond to and recover from a world-changing crisis,” said John Paul Farmer, Chief Technology Officer of New York City. “This effort will provide critical data to help City agencies accomplish their missions and provide essential services to people in need, while keeping privacy and the digital rights of New Yorkers at the forefront.”

“Data is power – and the more that we share data, the stronger we are and the faster we recover. The NYC Recovery Data Partnership will help us see what is working - and what isn’t - across many sectors and communities. This unique partnership will generate new ideas, perspectives and solutions to address today’s and tomorrow’s unprecedented challenges. I have no doubt that when we plan together, we create a stronger, more equitable and more resilient New York City,” said Marisa Lago, Director of the Department of City Planning.

“Older Adults Technology Services is proud to partner with NYC in its Recovery Data Partnership by supplying data to provide insight into how older adults are remaining connected to critical technologies, resources, and support services during Covid-19,” said Alex Grazebrook, Director of Operations at Older Adults Technology Services (OATS).

“The City’s commitment to transparency and education resonates with us. One of our core values at StreetEasy is to turn on the lights, empowering New Yorkers with data-driven insights so it’s easier to make informed real estate decisions day in and day out," said StreetEasy Economist Nancy Wu. “As the COVID-19 situation continues to evolve, real-time data is critical to help inform the city’s recovery. We appreciate the opportunity to contribute our data and be a part of these efforts to better understand the pandemic’s impacts on the NYC housing market, the real estate industry and local communities.”

“As we navigate massive changes to how we work and live, it’s more critical than ever that leaders have access to the most detailed and dynamic data,” said Nick DePorter, Public Policy Lead at LinkedIn. “We’re thrilled that LinkedIn's real-time hiring insights will help the City of New York build policies for an equitable, speedy economic recovery for all New Yorkers.”

"We want to thank the 100s of volunteers who continue to contribute their time, knowledge, and edits to produce hyper-local datasets documenting thousands of local businesses," said Noel Hidalgo, Executive Director of BetaNYC. "Over the last four months and with 10 community partners, we have translated hand written notes and social media posts into mobile friendly maps and community databases featuring the accessibility of food distribution locations, opening hours and senior hours! Through the uprising, we noted businesses owned or operated by neighbors who are women, BIPOC, and/or LGBTQ. Together, we are maintaining and sharing community knowledge to rebuild and support each other. We are honored to support City analysts in their efforts to move our city forward — Pal'ante!"

"We’re extremely proud to be a part of this opportunity — we fully believe that our data will be critical when it comes to guiding policy decisions, specifically to benefit New Yorkers who have been affected significantly by COVID-19. As a New York based company, we firmly believe in the principles of this partnership and recognize the importance of working with the city to support its recovery," said Antonio Tomarchio, CEO of Cuebiq.

“This partnership is a big step forward on the journey towards healing and ioby is excited to be a part of it. Everyday neighbors are key to a just and equitable recovery, and we look forward to sharing our expertise in community-led change with the City," said Erin Barnes, CEO of ioby.

"Recovery in NYC — economic and otherwise — will require our government to work closely with the private sector and other city stakeholders toward shared goals, and we are glad to see that happening with the launch of the Recovery Data Partnership," said Julie Samuels, Executive Director of Tech:NYC. "We applaud Mayor de Blasio and his administration for this important effort that will help foster equitable growth, and we hope that the trend toward responsible and transparent data sharing will continue throughout our recovery and beyond."

"Inefficiencies in data collaboration lead to costly delays in response times, lost opportunities to save lives and livelihoods, and a persistent lack of preparation for future threats. As a society we need to find new partnership models to leverage data for the public good in more systematic, sustainable and responsible ways. The Recovery Data Partnership provides a unique and exciting approach to meet those ends,” said Stefaan Verhulst, Co-Founder of The GovLab, Lead of its Data Collaboratives Program, and Recovery Data Partnership Advisor.

"As we work to rebuild a more resilient New York City in the wake of COVID-19, data will play a critical role. At Urban Tech Hub @ Company, we are working alongside entrepreneurs and startups that make up the fabric of this city and whose insights and perspectives will be invaluable in driving recovery," said Robinson Hernandez, Executive Director of the Urban Tech Hub @ Company, and Recovery Data Partnership Advisor.

“This invaluable data, now made accessible through this partnership, will enable researchers to build a more accurate picture of how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected New Yorkers. Policymakers can then make fairer and more equitable decisions as the city recovers and rebuilds,” said Jeannette Wing, Avanessians Director of the Data Science Institute and Professor of Computer Science at Columbia University.

“To fight COVID-19, we know that decision makers need high quality data to act well. We’re excited to see this effort to bring together more datasets in this fight, and we hope it leads to healthier and more equitable outcomes for all New Yorkers,” said Jake Porway, Founder & Executive Director, DataKind.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound negative impact on the health and wellbeing of New York’s children, families and communities, and has caused an unprecedented decline in the City’s economy,” said Jennifer March, Executive Director, Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York. “Citizens’ Committee for Children has long championed the power of data to identify community needs and inform policy, legislation and budgetary solutions that improve child and family wellbeing. As robust data collection and analysis must critically inform pandemic recovery efforts, we applaud the de Blasio Administration’s creation of the NYC Recovery Data Partnership.”