Water Education through Stories Using Open and Big Data

Transcription

1 Water Education through Stories Using Open and Big Data 2015 Sustaining Colorado s Watersheds, October 8, 2015 Steve Malers, Open Water Foundation steve.malers@openwaterfoundation.org

2 Education 1. The process of receiving systematic instruction, especially at a school or university 2. A body of knowledge acquired while being educated 3. An enlightening experience 4. Information about or training in a particular field or subject 2

3 Data and Information You can have data without information, but you cannot have information without data. - Daniel Keys Moran, programmer and writer If we have data, let s look at data. If all we have are opinions, let s go with mine. - Jim Barksdale, former Netscape CEO The goal is to turn data into information, and information into insight Carly Fiorina, former HP CEO 3

4 Open Data Definition Accessible to all the data becomes accessible outside of the organization that generated or collected it Machine-readable data must be usable, which means it must be made available in formats that are easily used by third-party applications Free zero or low costs for data access and openness Unrestricted rights to use data that is unencumbered by contractual or other restrictions leads to the maximum potential of innovation - Generating Economic Value through Open Data in Beyond Transparency 4

5 Big Data Definition Data sets so large or complex that traditional data processing applications are inadequate. Accuracy in big data may lead to more confident decision making, resulting in greater operational efficiency, cost reduction, and reduced risk. Analysis may find new correlations. Definition of big is a moving target. Photo credits: The Matrix movie, Imtech 5

6 Storytelling Characters roles, perspective Plot Narrative point of view Purpose: share values, pass knowledge, generate outcome 6

7 Roles of Science in Policy and Politics Pure Scientist share fundamental information (provide the data, let it speak) Science Arbiter resource for decision-maker (answer questions) (Stealth) Issue Advocate make a case for one alternative over another Honest Broker of Policy Alternatives comprehensive guide, allow decision-maker to reduce list of choices based on preferences and values - The Honest Broker, Roger Pielke, Jr. 7

8 What are Educational Roles? Government o Educating the public - outreach o Educating public servants/politicians Universities o Education o Research Pure Scientist Nonprofits advocacy or neutral Private industry trade groups, best practices Media neutral? biased? Citizens 8

9 Telling Your Story with Data There are two goals when presenting data: convey your story and establish credibility. -Edward Tufte 9

10 Communication Through Allegory Temba, his arms wide (sharing) Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra (two warriors that had to cooperate to defeat a beast) Photo credit: Picard and Dathon, Star Trek the Next Generation, 10

11 Shared Experience Photo Arthur Rothstein 11

12 A Classic Data Visualization Troop Count Coordinates Distance Direction Dates Temperature 12

13 The Snake Diagram 13

14 Early Virtual Water Example Source of beef for Paris, France 14

15 Virtual Water / Water Footprint Why beef is the new SUV waterfootprint.org 15

16 Colorado Water Economy Water and the Colorado Economy, Front Range Water Council,

17 Clarity / Context / What is Water Use? Depletions from river/aquifer? Metered deliveries? Consumptive use? From which perspective(s) is the story told? What points are being made? 17

18 Urban Water Provider System Wholesale provider (raw/treated) System losses Resale entity Wholesale & agricultural sales Groundwater withdrawals Surface water diversions Water treatment plant Distributed non-potable water Distributed potable water Springs Irrigation only Residential -Single-family -Multi-family Commercial, Industrial, and Institutional (CII) Municipal/ Utility Facility Effluent treatment plant Municipal Water Provider System Components Effluent reuse Treated wastewater effluent Wastewater treatment plant Sewage collection system Legend Raw water supply Non-potable water Potable water Wastewater Irrigation return flows 09/25/2015 Downstream

19 We Have Met the Enemy and He is PowerPoint PowerPoint diagram to display the complexity of the American strategy in Afghanistan 19

20 Poudre Basin Straight Line Diagram 20

21 Changes Over Time and Space

22 Make the Complicated Simple Making the simple complicated is commonplace. Making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that s creativity -Charles Mingus 22

23 Poudre River Stream mile = simple d6bea7a0d915 Getting this in a machine readable format? = not simple 23

24 National Hydrography Dataset (USGS) NHD = complicated Division of Water Resource s Source Water Route Framework (SWRF) = simpler 24

25 Stream Mile Representation Framework E&R Attributes Instream Flow Reaches Projects & Methods Stream Gages Diversion Headgates Organization Extent Master Plans and more Stream mile + Excel = simpler yet 25

26 London Cholera Epidemic of Shared pump 26

27 Citizen Science High Groundwater CoCoRaHS Citizen-reported precipitation

28 Time Again: History of Rock and Roll 28

29 Diversion Records Need annotations for context 29

30 The Complexity of Colorado Water 30

31 The Complexity of Colorado Water 31

32 The Most Common Jobs in Each State

33 Irrigated Agriculture Dry Up Open Water Foundation 33

34 data.colorado.gov 34

35 Observations There is great potential to use open/big data to tell stories about water resources. The challenge is to make complex things simple, or at least easier to understand. We must leverage each other s data and work collaboratively to be effective, efficient, and transparent. Water education can benefit from open/big data and technologies used to tell stories. Organizational capacity is perhaps the biggest challenge to telling big stories. 35

36 Share It The content of this presentation is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial License: openwaterfoundation.org 36