Our Chief Executive Catherine Stihler OBE has accepted a new opportunity and will soon be leaving the Open Knowledge Foundation. She goes with our very warmest wishes and we hope to continue a strong relationship with her in her new role as CEO of Creative Commons. Catherine joined the Open Knowledge Foundation in February 2019 […]
The Open Human Genome, twenty years on
On 26th June 2000, the “working draft” of the human genome sequence was announced to great fanfare. Its availability has gone on to revolutionise biomedical research. But this iconic event, twenty years ago today, is also a reference point for the value and power of openness and its evolution. Biology’s first mega project Back in […]
Enough is enough: solidarity with the Black community and Black Lives Matter
The mission of the Open Knowledge Foundation is to work for a fair, free and open future for all, not just some. We stand against the racism, injustices, and inequalities plaguing our world today. It is our responsibility to use our platform to elevate marginalised voices and take action against racism. We ask that the […]
Opinion poll: majority of Brits want government action against online disinformation
A new opinion poll has revealed that a majority of people in the UK want ministers to take action against disinformation on social media sites. The poll by Survation for the Open Knowledge Foundation found that 55 per cent of people in the UK believe the Government should ‘impose compulsory action on social media sites […]
Why we need public models for public policy
Corona Time has brought the eery experience of becoming like a pawn on a chess board. Suddenly where we go, what we do, what we wear, who we meet and why are decided by somebody else. Here in Berlin, our youngest son now goes to school on Tuesday and Thursday mornings while his best friend […]
Brits demand openness from government in tackling coronavirus
A new opinion poll has revealed that people across the UK want openness from the government as it tackles the coronavirus pandemic. The Survation poll for the Open Knowledge Foundation found that in response to COVID-19, people want data to be openly available for checking, they are more likely to listen to expert advice from […]
New opinion poll – UK contact-tracing app must take account of human rights
A new opinion poll has revealed that an overwhelming majority of Brits want any coronavirus contact-tracing app to take account of civil liberties and people’s privacy. The Survation poll for the Open Knowledge Foundation comes ahead of today’s evidence session at Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights on the human rights implications of COVID-19 tracing […]
Coronavirus: why an open future has never been more important
The coronavirus pandemic has turned our world upside down. 2020 will be remembered as the year when we faced the greatest global crisis since the Second World War, and its impact will be felt for generations to come. Tens of thousands of families have said goodbye to loved ones, taken from them by an invisible […]
Launching the Open Knowledge Justice Programme
Supporting legal professionals in the fight for algorithmic accountability, by Meg Foulkes and Cedric Lombion Last month, Open Knowledge Foundation made a commitment to apply our unique skills and network to the emerging issues of AI and algorithms. We can now provide you with more details about the work we are planning to support legal […]
New Open Knowledge Foundation board chair and vice-chair appointed
The Open Knowledge Foundation is delighted to announce that Vanessa Barnett has been appointed as the new Chair of the Board of Directors, and Helen Turvey has been appointed as Vice-Chair. Vanessa Barnett said: “It is a great honour to be appointed Chair of the Open Knowledge Foundation, at an incredibly exciting time for the organisation. […]
For a fair, free and open future: celebrating 15 years of the Open Knowledge Foundation
Fifteen years ago, the Open Knowledge Foundation was launched in Cambridge by entrepreneur and economist Rufus Pollock. At the time, open data was an entirely new concept. Worldwide internet users were barely above the 10 per cent mark, and Facebook was still in its infancy. But Rufus foresaw both the massive potential and the huge […]
OKCon 2011 Presentation and Speaker Preview
The following post is from Daniel Dietrich, Board Member of OKF Deutschland and main organiser of OKCon 2011 in Berlin. Although the list of keynote speakers and presentations is not yet set in stone, it is shaping up very nicely so far! Here is a bit of a sneak preview of just a few of […]