22 mayors from North and South America join City Data Alliance to chart new frontiers for data-driven government
Bloomberg Cities Network
Over the past decade, city leaders have grown increasingly more sophisticated in their use of data to inform decisions, improve services, and deliver impact for residents—an evolution that was especially clear at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mayors around the world marshaled data in new ways to spot outbreaks, target testing and vaccination campaigns, address inequalities, monitor hospital capacity, advocate for resources, tailor masking and lockdown policies, and communicate with the public. There’s little doubt that the dynamic capabilities mayors and their teams built to analyze and act on key metrics in real-time saved lives.
Now, some of the cities around the world using data most effectively to serve their residents are ready to see how they can scale their efforts.
This week, mayors from 22 cities across North, Central, and South America are in Baltimore to kick off their participation in the Bloomberg Philanthropies City Data Alliance. Their shared mission: to build on their already strong foundations to discover together what the next level of data-driven local government looks like.
“These local governments are already leaders in using data to transform public services and deliver more for residents, especially those who’ve been left behind,” says James Anderson, who leads Government Innovation at Bloomberg Philanthropies. “The COVID-19 pandemic revealed how central data is to government that works. The Bloomberg Philanthropies City Data Alliance will help these cities detect problems earlier, manage resources more effectively, and target resources to those who need them.”