2022 has undoubtedly been different from the last 2 years. Air spaces opened up and we were able to move around the globe to attend open+ conferences, something that we weren’t able to do since the pandemic began. The world started to feel somewhat normal again except with soaring fuel prices and the unfortunate war in Ukraine.
But how well did the open+ spaces do this year? What are some of the wins and misses?
Below are some reflections from the Open Heroines community on the state of open in 2022:
Heather Leson
There is a rise of OSPOs (Open Source Program Offices) in humanitarian and business which could be an indicator of open growing. However, it is super unclear that open is faring well in each sector. I am wondering whether it will be stunted or tarnished by the rise of nationalism in some countries.
Gender inclusion and leadership was very much on my mind and in our activities at Open Organizations and Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT). It strikes me that we will always need to focus on gender inclusion.
This year I participated in three publications to support open:
- Opening Up Social Impact-Focused Organizations
- Open Leadership Assessment
- Open Mapping towards SDGs
Arnalie Vicario
I just joined the Open Heroines network this year (thank you @Heather for inviting me) and I really felt the community’s support and warm welcome! In the open mapping / openstreetmap space that I am very engaged in, a lot has happened but would like to highlight two things:
1) Re-examining where we hold “open” and “international” in-person conferences.
Instead of a central Humanitarian Openstreetmap Team (HOT) Summit / conference, HOT ventured in a different approach investing resources in supporting and collaborating on a range of community events, bringing the spirit of the Summit to multiple new places and hundreds of new people! — the unSummit approach.
After 2 years of online conferences, State of the Map (SotM) 2022 was held in-person in Florence, Italy this year (with an online component). Moving forward, the SotM Working Group has decided not to organize an international State of the Map 2023. Instead, they will focus on finding a venue in Africa for 2024 (regionally, the conference was never held here).
2) Opening the pathway to a more diverse leadership on the Openstreetmap Foundation Board. (incorporated 2006/2007).
In 2020,Eugene Villar from the Philippines became the first person of color on the board and in the 2022 elections 3 women ran for elections and 2 won (me included). I became the first woman of color to be elected to the board.
Small steps, but I am looking forward to learning and growing with Open Heroines :)
Anna Wenerska-Dzieduch
From my point of view, the process of opening data in Poland at the governmental level is going well as shown here, but surely this process could be faster and uniform at the regional and local level.
The Open Heroines Community helped me realize that Polish open-data issues are so different from those in other parts of the world. As we implement governmental solutions in Poland, we should also take notice of and support growing non-governmental institutions which want to deal with open data, in particular in the sphere of gender open data.
Marisa Miodosky
In 2022 I felt that our community got stronger and more cohesive. I would like to highlight three facts I am proud of:
- Our membership grew and the community got new energetic people. As a result of that, we started the Open Heroines Labs that allowed us to work together and to learn more from each other.
- We met in person at America Abierta with many founding members of Open Heroines who were able to transmit the mystic of birth of our community to our just joined members. In one of the most well-attended meetings of the Conference, we worked on an agenda that brought together the open government and the gender agenda in the region.
- Our community continues to create a space where members with similar interests can collaborate and this is great for personal career development as well stirring creativity in the open civic space.
Silvana Fumega, Global Data Barometer
In May 2022, the new Global Data Barometer (GDB) launched the results of its first edition, after two years of intensive work by many organizations and colleagues. Here are some numbers related to this first edition: 109 countries, 12 regional hubs, 6 thematic partners, 39 indicators, and more than 60000 data points. In this report and on this website, you’ll also find information on +1100 datasets, +900 frameworks, and +70 open data initiatives.
The GDB is a key global benchmark that looks at data governance, capability, availability, and use and impact of data for public good and provides longitudinal data that can drive policy making, dialogue, and further empirical research.
Tracy Kadessa
Attending Open conferences continues to be a nightmare for many participants travelling with passports from African countries. We can not continue to say we are inclusive if those from African countries are unnecessarily discriminated. Let us stop hosting Open conferences in countries that are allergic to people from African countries.
Tanya Yeomans
Just want to say a little thank you to all the Open Heroine folks for sharing your work, ideas, and resources all year. I find this space so wonderful thanks to your collective efforts.
Yanina Bellini Saibene
I want to express my gratitude to this space (Open Heroines). I hope I can be more active next year, but I have learned so much about so many communities and initiatives here. It fills me with hope that we can build a better world.
