DataFryslân enables collaboration with data

On Tuesday 12 February, eight organizations, including Campus Fryslân, the province, three municipalities, two knowledge institutes and CBS (Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek), signed a cooperation agreement to start DataFryslân. This allows organizations to make smart use of each other's data and knowledge.

Hub, Lab, and a Podium

DataFryslân entails that Fryslân cooperates and learns to answer relevant questions about liveability, tourism, economy and social issues. Within DataFryslân a Hub is created in which linking and access to data are arranged. There will be a Lab in which employees and students will experiment and learn in varying collaborations and surprise them with outcomes. And there will be a Podium in which the experiences will be shared with each other and the rest of Fryslân. Knowledge from other regions is also brought in here to accelerate learning.

New insights

"Data is the new gold", is something you hear often. However, data are mainly raw materials that generate new insights through analysis and linking. This requires expertise and the space to use and share the data. The participating organizations realize that datascience and data applications are developing at lightning speed and that collaboration and learning together will help Fryslân further. The goal is to strengthen each other to come up with beautiful answers. Answers to questions such as: "what does a shrinking village look like in 15 years?", "How many tourists move in the province and how does their demand develop?", Or "in which neighborhoods do we see strong growth in care and WMO?". Questions that can be answered by linking and analyzing data and thus lead to better policy and new services.

Urban data center

With the establishment of DataFryslân, the participating organizations make agreements about the use, access, quality and safety of the data and the results. This must of course be properly arranged. This is one of the reasons to actively involve the CBS, which already has a lot of experience with urban data centers. And by working with students and also providing continuing education, DataFryslân wants to contribute to the development of good data professionals for the region.