News

Treating grantees’ data responsibly

15 October 2018

By Jeremy Peters

This post is based on the announcement by The Engine Room

As you may have read, over the six months we’ve been working with Ariadne and The Engine Room to research how funders think about sharing data, to support them in doing so responsibly.

Supported by Digital Impact (part of the Digital Civil Society Lab at Stanford University), we’ve now launched a guide to help funders think about how to have better conversations about responsible data.

The Conversation Guide is designed for funders and grantmakers who want to treat their grantees’ data responsibly, and want practical advice on how to do so. It is inspired by conversation guides on other topics that people can find difficult to discuss, from abortion and domestic violence to end-of-life care.

Our guide is organised along the grant management life cycle, specifically around:

• Data collecting: how to start a conversation on managing data in the application, monitoring and reporting phases.
• Storing grantee data: how to provide clear information on which data is collected and why, and how you will store it.
• Sharing and publishing information: how to start a conversation on sharing and publishing information in a considered, responsible way.

For each, the guide suggests what to prepare before the conversation; tips for discussion with grantee and back donors, and points to consider afterwards. It’s based on our research earlier in the project – why and how funders currently share data, the challenges of doing so responsibly, and funders’ views on the obstacles they face.

Download the Guide.