The answer to a “polycrisis”? A new generation of data impact professionals.

After the recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, responders quickly recognized the power of community mobilization, combined with technology and data. Within 30 hours post-quake, students and graduates of Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey created an open-source website to provide disaster information. Others created a heatmap to guide rescue teams. In Syria, the White Helmets, a local volunteer group, are contributing eyewitness data and driving rescue efforts despite few resources and little help from the outside world. But with over 50,000 dead and thousands more displaced, local and global responders have their work cut out for them – while elsewhere, the reverberating impacts of the climate crisis, food insecurity, and war show no sign of reprieve.

Together, we have the data and technologies to tackle – or at least alleviate – suffering from these intersecting crises; but many organizations at the frontlines, including 67% of nonprofits, lack the robust data capacity and support needed at scale. Partnering with data.org ( Danil Mikhailov , Perry Hewitt , and Ginger Zielinskie ) and Dalberg , our team at The Patrick J. McGovern Foundation set out to better understand this challenge. In doing so, we identified a pathway to grow an emerging pool of talent: millions of new data for social impact (DSI) professionals by 2032. The following steps can help achieve this target:

1. Focus on building a diverse network of IDEA-minded DSI professionals in developing contexts.

Lived experience brings unique value to social impact work – from deep understanding of the needs and gaps faced by systemically underserved communities, to an unbreakable drive for change. For example, women and girls in developing contexts bear disproportionate vulnerability to adverse climate events, making up an estimated 80% of all those displaced. Nevertheless, women – especially Indigenous women – are leading the fight for climate justice, using traditional knowledge, organizing power, and community cooperation to conserve biodiversity and protect the Earth.?

Equipping those at the frontlines of vulnerability with the data talent and tools they need to succeed means actively integrating principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA) into our training and outreach efforts. Organizations like Technovation ( Tara Chklovski ) are showing how applying these principles – through empowering girls with technical and leadership skills – can help address localized climate threats. If scaled, efforts like these can revolutionize our fight against climate change and other global crises.?

2. Build capacity by leveraging distinct pools of talent.

Empowering communities of DSI professionals means not only finding, nurturing, and sustaining data talent, but also steering that talent towards mission-driven organizations. Our partners and colleagues are actively fostering four pools of talent:

• New talent includes younger or new professionals who, if equipped with data talent, can drive improvements in the social sector. AkiraChix ( Linda Kamau ), for example, fosters data talent and entrepreneurial skills in young African women – many of whom graduate into careers in the local and global tech sector, building their local economies and talent pipelines.?
• Existing talent includes professionals in the social sector who, through upskilling and reskilling, can improve efficiency and accelerate operations in their own mission-driven organizations. Groups like NetHope ( Lance Pierce ) are working to build digital capacity across the humanitarian sector through a train-the-trainers approach.
• Transitional talent includes data professionals currently outside the social sector, recruitable for mission-driven work. Recent layoffs in the private sector have opened the door for seasoned tech professionals to move into the social sector – if given the proper incentives – and leverage their talents for good. For example, see the work of Equitech Futures ( Abhilash Mishra ), which attracts high-quality talent from academia and industry who are passionate about working on technology for social good and are willing to take a risk on a new career path.
• Leadership talent includes leaders and senior executives of social impact organizations who can help build, support, and sustain data-ready teams. Groups like Amani Institute ( Roshan Paul ) have dedicated their efforts to nurture leaders and businesses dedicated to social impact and sustainable development.

3. Tackle systemic barriers that reduce the effectiveness of talent and training initiatives.

Several factors challenge our efforts to build and sustain data talent in the social sector – from limited access to STEM in traditional education routes, to broader ecosystem constraints in the overall market for data professionals. But identifying barriers early can allow us to implement solutions with better outcomes. A few recommendations show promise:

• By creating more dedicated STEM programs that orient students towards social impact careers, traditional universities can help build a new generation of DSI professionals.?
• By linking skills training with job preparedness – such as apprenticeships and paid internships – trainees in massive open online courses (MOOCs) and online programs can see better outcomes and increased job placement.
• By training and recruiting mid- and senior-level DSI talent, organizations can close talent gaps and help foster networks of socially minded, data-driven leaders.
• By improving their understanding of market supply and demand for data professionals, and incentivizing trainees towards DSI careers, sector leaders can overcome broader ecosystem constraints.
• By prioritizing holistic, rather than individual solutions, training programs can boost capacity across the entire social impact and data ecosystem.

The earthquakes in Syria and Turkey are a call to action. To equip our frontline fighters with the technical skills, resources, and networks they need to meet the challenges ahead, we will need multi-sectoral, collective commitments. The next crisis is coming. With a global network of dedicated and diverse DSI professionals, we can better prepare and respond more quickly, leveraging existing tools to serve humanity.

This note was co-authored by Vilas Dhar and Yolanda Botti-Lodovico , based on remarks given on February 9, 2023 at DeepFest AI ( Ailsa Williamson ) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.