During the last decade the importance of digital data has risen immensely due to its many applications and potential to be a tool for addressing the world’s most pressing issues ethically and efficiently. To understand this scenario and the different topics related to the newest uses of data in development and diplomacy, the Frontier Technologies Hub and Niras Digital Futures Hub recently launched the The Data Frontier podcast, funded by UKAid.
This seven-part podcast series invites people who are immersed in the new data frontier to talk about their diverse experiences in using digital data. Our director and co-founder, Emmanuel Letouzé was invited to participate in an episode, where the hosts and him discuss the new data paradigm and how it can be used to build more inclusive and strong societies. He further explains how new opportunities brought up by data can fit within wider global trends by helping us to examine social, economic and political challenges under a new lens, and solve them. The episode emphasizes the importance of moving forward in a socially inclusive way that brings together different disciplines, sectors and social groups.
We invite you to listen to each of the episodes that make part of this incredible new podcast series.
Full 7 episodes
Counting Cows: Putting data science tools in the hands of development decision-makers — Tim Harris, user engagement lead for the Data Science Hub of the Data Science Campus, FCDO/Office for National Statistics
Complex Cities, Digital Data: Building urban climate resilience through the locally-led production of new data — Interview with Edward Anderson, Senior Technology and Resilience Specialist for the World Bank based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Mapping humanity: Using frontier data technologies and AI to provide hyper-local spatial data around the world — Interview with Melissa Persaud, Director of New Business, Global Development at Fraym, about their pioneering work using frontier data technology to produce hyper-local (1km² level) spatial data in a field where data is traditionally hard to access
Governing Data: Unlocking new and existing data sources for public decision making — Interview with Stefaan Verhulst, Co-Founder and Chief Research and Development Officer of the Governance Laboratory (The GovLab) at New York University (NYU)
How to engage with data: Promoting data science in government and beyond — Interview with Tom Wilkinson, Data Science Hub Lead of the Data Science Campus, FCDO/Office for National Statistics
Data and diplomacy: Frontier data for diplomacy and international relations work at the FCDO — Interview with Harriet Cross, the UK High Commissioner to Trinidad & Tobago
Building back better: The new data paradigm and how we can use it to build strong and inclusive societies — Interview with Emmanual Letouzé, Director and Co-Founder of Data-Pop Alliance, a coalition on Big Data and development co-created in 2013 by the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, MIT Media Lab, and Overseas Development Institute.
Learn more about the podcast in this Medium blogpost.
![[WEB] Feature Blog Post](https://datapopalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/WEB-Feature-Blog-Post-1-1.png)