Open Data Canada (CA0031)
Overview
At-a-Glance
Action Plan: Canada, Second Action Plan, 2014-2016
Action Plan Cycle: 2014
Status: Inactive
Institutions
Lead Institution: Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
Support Institution(s): Provinces, territories, and municipalities
Policy Areas
Access to Information, Open Data, SubnationalIRM Review
IRM Report: Canada End-of-Term Report 2014-2016, Canada Progress Report 2014-2015
Starred:
Yes
Early Results: Marginal
Design i
Verifiable: Yes
Relevant to OGP Values: Access to Information , Technology
Implementation i
Description
The Government of Canada will work with provinces, territories, and municipalities to
break down barriers to integrated, pan-Canadian open data services through the
establishment of common principles, standards, and licensing across all levels of
government.
IRM End of Term Status Summary
Commitment 2. Open Data (✪)
Commitment Text:
The Government of Canada will work with provinces, territories, and municipalities to break down barriers to integrated, pan-Canadian open data services through the establishment of common principles, standards, and licensing across all levels of government.
As announced at the OGP Annual Summit in October 2013, the pan-Canadian, Open Data Canada strategy will remove existing jurisdictional barriers to realizing the full potential of open data in Canada. By harmonizing and integrating the diverse range of open data activities happening at all levels of government across Canada, we will facilitate a 'no wrong door' approach to open government data, regardless of which government owns it.
This is a challenging prospect given that Canada is a decentralized federation in which government programs and services cut across multiple jurisdictions. Health, transportation, and agriculture are just a few examples of government activities that have municipal, provincial/territorial, and federal involvement.
Our consultations with citizens and civil society organizations have reinforced how important it is that users be able to combine data from multiple jurisdictions in spite of any challenges that stand in the way. Such challenges include data ownership, search and discovery barriers, licensing, cataloguing, and significant differences across jurisdictions with regard to capacity. As part of our commitment to open data in Canada, we will address these challenges head-on.
Work on these activities will be governed by a national Open Data Canada Steering Committee with representation from all levels of government. The end result will provide unprecedented access to comprehensive open data from across Canada to spur innovation, increase productivity, and ultimately improve the lives of Canadians.
Deliverables to be completed in 2014-16:
- Establish common open data principles for adoption by governments across Canada.
- Facilitate the adoption of a common or compatible open government licence by all Canadian governments to enable the release and reuse of open data and information.
- Establish or identify common open data standards (e.g., metadata, data formats) that align with existing international standards for adoption by governments across Canada.
- Develop a federated open data search service with provinces and municipalities to provide users with a 'no wrong door' approach to accessing open data, so that data can be easily found and downloaded regardless of which government open data portal is used.
- Expand and deliver a national appathon event, the Canadian Open Data Experience (CODE), to promote access to, and reuse of, multi-jurisdictional data to develop new and innovative tools and services for Canadians.
Responsible institution: Treasury Board Secretariat
Supporting institution(s): Provinces, Territories and Municipalities
Start date: November 2014 End date: 30 June 2016
Editorial note: This is a starred commitment, because it is measurable, clearly relevant to OGP values as written, of transformative potential impact, and was substantially or completely implemented.
Commitment Aim:
The purpose of this commitment is to facilitate Canadians’ retrieval of data across various levels of government in Canada by developing a pan-Canadian open data service with common principles, standards, and licensing across all levels of government. The additional federated open data search service aims to provide users with a ‘no wrong door’ approach, so they can retrieve data easily regardless of which portal they use. The commitment also included access to and reuse of multi-jurisdictional data via an expansion of the Canadian Open Data Experience (CODE), part of Canada’s national appathon. CODE 2015, http://open.canada.ca/en/canadian-open-data-experience-code At the appathon event, participants were encouraged to “mash-up federal datasets as well as include provincial, territorial, and municipal data when building apps.” Prior to this commitment, the majority of municipalities, provinces, territories, and the federal government were using a range of open data standards, principles, and licenses - users had to know which level of government housed which data in order to retrieve what they were looking for.
STATUS
Mid-term: Substantial
Fundamental work on this commitment took place in the first year, including a survey on best practices, challenges, and opportunities with provinces and territories, a metadata mapping exercise with five provinces (to be used as a foundation for drafting common standards), and published guidelines for implementing the Open Government Licence. The CODE appathon was completed - it took place from 20 – 22 February 2015. However, the federated open data search service was not established.
End of term: Substantial
The government considers the Open Data Charter announced in May 2015 the common data principles to be used for adoption by governments across Canada. Open Data Charter, http://opendatacharter.net As such, milestone 2.1 (establishment of common data principles) was completed. The government of Canada played a significant role in the development of the Charter.
Little changed with the common open government licence from the mid term progress report to the end of term report. Active open data provinces and some municipalities have adopted licences that are compatible with the Open Government Licence. Open Government Across Canada, http://open.canada.ca/en/maps/open-data-canada?_ga=1.14756598.1705124065.1448712857#toc5 However, more work remains to be done when it comes to providing support and guidance to jurisdictions considering adoption of a licencing regime compatible with the Open Government Licence.
No notable progress took place in the second year of the action plan cycle for the common open data standard and federated open data search service.
Expansion of the national appathon event was completed during the first year of the action plan cycle and is discussed at length in the mid term progress report. Canada Progress Report 2014-2015: http://www.opengovpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2001/01/1.Canada14-15_English_Final_0.pdf
Did it open government?
Access to information: Marginal
This commitment had a marginal effect on government openness. It resulted in some discussions and work between the federal government and other levels of government regarding common open data principles, licencing, standards, and search services. These are necessary and important steps forward, but work remains to be done for this commitment to be fully implemented.
Carried forward?
The third and fourth milestones have been carried forward to the third action plan under that document’s commitment 16: ‘Align Open Data Across Canada.’ The milestones under this commitment include:
- Foster the adoption of common open data principles that are consistent with the International Open Data Charter by all levels of government.
- Develop a list of high-value, priority datasets for release in collaboration with key jurisdictions to make it easier for Canadians to compare data across different governments.
- Launch an online, federated, multi-jurisdictional open data search service in partnership with one or more provinces and territories to allow Canadians to search and access data from across jurisdictions, regardless of its origin.
- Host a national Open Data Canada summit in 2017 to bring together federal, provincial/ territorial, and municipal officials to collaborate on setting a national agenda for aligning and improving the delivery of open data across the country. Canada’s Third Biennial Plan to the Open Government Partnership 2016 – 2018, http://www.opengovpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2001/01/Canada_AP3.pdf
Commitments
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User-Friendly Open Government
CA0064, 2018, Access to Information
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Financial Transparency and Accountability
CA0065, 2018, Access to Information
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Corporate Transparency
CA0066, 2018, Anti-Corruption
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Digital Government and Services
CA0067, 2018, Automated Decision-Making
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Open Science
CA0068, 2018, Access to Information
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Healthy Democracy
CA0069, 2018, Anti-Corruption
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Access to Information
CA0070, 2018, Access to Information
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Feminist and Inclusive Dialogue
CA0071, 2018, Capacity Building
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Reconciliation and Open Government
CA0072, 2018, Access to Information
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Open Government Community
CA0073, 2018, Access to Information
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Enhance Access to Information
CA0042, 2016, Access to Information
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Streamline Requests for Personal Information
CA0043, 2016, E-Government
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Expand and Improve Open Data
CA0044, 2016, Access to Information
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Provide and Preserve Open Information
CA0045, 2016, E-Government
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Define an Approach for Measuring Open Government Performance
CA0046, 2016, Capacity Building
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Develop Open Government Skills Across the Federal Public Service
CA0047, 2016, Access to Information
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Embed Transparency Requirements in the Federal Service Strategy
CA0048, 2016, Capacity Building
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Enhance Access to Culture & Heritage Collections
CA0049, 2016, Capacity Building
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Enhance Openness of Information on Government Spending and Procurement
CA0050, 2016, Capacity Building
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Increase Transparency of Budget and Other Department of Finance Information
CA0051, 2016, Capacity Building
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Increase Transparency of Grants and Contributions Funding
CA0052, 2016, Capacity Building
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Improve Public Information on Canadian Corporations
CA0053, 2016, E-Government
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Increase the Availability and Usability of Geospatial Data
CA0054, 2016, Access to Information
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Increase Openness of Federal Science Activities (Open Science)
CA0055, 2016, Capacity Building
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Stimulate Innovation through Canada’s Open Data Exchange (ODX)
CA0056, 2016, Access to Information
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Align Open Data Across Canada (Open Data Canada)
CA0057, 2016, Access to Information
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Implement the Extractives Sector Transparency Measures Act
CA0058, 2016, Anti-Corruption
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Support Openness and Transparency Initiatives Around the World
CA0059, 2016, Access to Information
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Engage Civil Society on Open Government
CA0060, 2016, Public Participation
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Enable Open Dialogue and Open Policy Making
CA0061, 2016, Capacity Building
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Promote Open Government Globally
CA0062, 2016, Access to Information
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Engage Canadians to Improve Key Canada Revenue Agency Services
CA0063, 2016, Access to Information
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Implement Directive on Open Government
CA0030, 2014, Access to Information
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Open Data Canada
CA0031, 2014, Access to Information
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Canadian Open Data Exchange (ODX)
CA0032, 2014, Access to Information
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Open Data for Development
CA0033, 2014, Access to Information
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Open Data Core Commitment
CA0034, 2014, Access to Information
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Open Science
CA0035, 2014, Public Participation
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Mandatory Reporting on Extractives
CA0036, 2014, Anti-Corruption
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Open Contracting
CA0037, 2014, Anti-Corruption
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Open Information on Budgets and Expenditures
CA0038, 2014, Fiscal Openness
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Digital Literacy
CA0039, 2014, Capacity Building
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Open Information Core Commitment
CA0040, 2014, Access to Information
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Consulting Canadians
CA0041, 2014, Marginalized Communities
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International Aid Transparency Initiative: Publish Plan to Make CIDA Activities Available and Accessible
CA0010, 2012, Aid
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International Aid Transparency Initiative: Implement Plan
CA0011, 2012, Aid
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Opening Government of Canada Records: Increase Access to Archived Federal Documents at Library and Archives Canada
CA0012, 2012, Records Management
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Opening Government of Canada Records: Issue New Mandatory Policy on Document Classification
CA0013, 2012, Records Management
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Opening Government of Canada Records: Make Classified Information Available Online
CA0014, 2012, E-Government
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GCDOCS: Deploy Wave One of Electronic Record and Document Management Solution
CA0015, 2012, E-Government
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GCDOCS: Deploy Across Federal Government
CA0016, 2012, E-Government
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GCWEB: Develop Consolidated Web Presence
CA0017, 2012, E-Government
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GCWEB: Implement New Platform
CA0018, 2012, E-Government
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Data.Gc.Ca: Expand Number of Datasets Available
CA0019, 2012, Access to Information
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Data.Gc.Ca: Implement Data.Gc.Ca Portal
CA0020, 2012, Access to Information
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Data.Gc.Ca: Improve Standardization of Data
CA0021, 2012, Access to Information
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Government of Canada Resource Management Data: Publish Resource Management and Performance Data
CA0022, 2012, Access to Information
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Government of Canada Resource Management Data: Enhance Search and Data Tools
CA0023, 2012, Access to Information
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Consulting Canadians: Develop New Platform for Consultation
CA0024, 2012, E-Government
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Consulting Canadians: Develop Standard Approach to Use of Social Media
CA0025, 2012, E-Government
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Consulting Canadians: Pilot a Crowdsourcing Initiative
CA0026, 2012, E-Government
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Consulting Canadians: Enable Use of Common Online Tools
CA0027, 2012, E-Government
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Open Regulation: Federal Regulators to Post Forward Regulatory Plans
CA0028, 2012, Legislation & Regulation
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Open Regulation: Simplify Engagement Activities
CA0029, 2012, Legislation & Regulation
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Open Government Directive: Issue Directive on Open Government
CA0001, 2012, E-Government
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Open Government Directive: Implement Directive on Open Government
CA0002, 2012, E-Government
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Open Government Licence: Issue Open Government Licence
CA0003, 2012, Legislation & Regulation
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Open Government Licence: Adopt Open Government Licence
CA0004, 2012,
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Modernising Administration of Access to Information: Pilot of Online Request and Payment Service
CA0005, 2012, Access to Information
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Modernising Administration of Access to Information: Implement ATI Solution
CA0006, 2012, Access to Information
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Modernising Administration of Access to Information: Make Completed ATI Request Summaries Searchable
CA0007, 2012, Access to Information
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Virtual Library: Begin Design of Virtual Library
CA0008, 2012, E-Government
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Virtual Library: Launch Virtual Library
CA0009, 2012, E-Government