Mission
BetaNYC is a civic technology non-profit organization dedicated to improving lives in New York through civic design, technology, and data. We want to make it easier for New Yorkers to access information and use open data in NYC to improve their civic experience.
When empowered with modern civic tools, they can hold their government accountable, while improving their economic opportunity. We want New York’s governments to work for the people, by the people, for the digital era.
Our mission is to work in partnership with New Yorkers and local government to demystify open data and civic tech and contribute to a healthy and diverse ecosystem of open data and technology in NYC.
Purpose
Improving lives through civic design, public interest technology, and open data.
- We empower the public with tools, education, and data.
- We demystify government, technology, design, and data with the goal of improving access to services and information.
- We explore a world of possibilities by providing a safe space for individuals and government to collaborate to improve the city.
We envision a City where
- individuals are empowered with knowledge and tools to address their community’s problems;
- individuals and communities actively participate in the local governance process;
- community members are seen as trusted collaborators on impactful solutions;
- community based organizations effectively use tools to improve the lives of their clients;
- elected representatives are capable of proactively and effectively communicating with their constituents; government and social services are centered around the constituent;
- government collaborates with community to explore insights and experiment at civic innovation events (i.e. hackathons, datapaloozas, and design camps);
- education, fellowship, and community are combined to provide a ladder of growth, equity, sustainability, and resilience;
- the future is written in collaboration, not for.
Our Values
The Freedom to Connect represents the idea that access to high-speed bi-directional internet is a prerequisite to full civic participation. Economic growth, job creation, educational opportunities, public safety, digital government services, and access to affordable health care depend on affordable and fast connectivity. In 1932, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt emphasized the right of communities to provide their own electricity. Today, communities need infrastructure for high speed universal access.
The Freedom to Learn is the ideal that unrestricted access to knowledge, institutions, code, algorithms, data, and tools, regardless of place of birth, ability, language, identity, age, faith, or income, is essential to an empowered and educated public.
The Freedom to Innovate is central to the advancement of communities and knowledge. Innovation is vital to the development of a complex, dynamic, and thriving civil society. This City’s heritage is rooted in sharing the land, air, and sea. We need laws and policies that place people before profit, provide for universal economic opportunity, protect the commons, and allows for innovation.
The Freedom to Collaborate stands for the ideal that participatory democracy is not centralized. Regardless of status and interface, we must have the ability to engage with our government, wherever and whenever. We must have the power to effect change and be a government by the people, for the people.
Funders & Collaborators
BetaNYC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization via The Fund for the City of New York’s partner project program. All donations are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law; our Federal ID / EIN number: 13-2612524. We would appreciate your donation.
We have received funding and support from Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Fund for the City of New York, New York City Council, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Microsoft Civic, Data and Society Research Institution, Blue Ridge Foundation, Mozilla, Socrata, Accela, Carto, NYC Media Lab, Datapolitan, Ontodia, and private donors.
BetaNYC was a member of the Code for America Brigade community and we are honored to have worked with the following organizations: Reinvent Albany, CUNY, New America, Cornell Tech, Office of the Public Advocate, New York City Council, New York Tech Meetup, Civic Hall, Coalition for Queens, Dev Bootcamp, OpenPlans, Silicon Harlem, NYC Digital, NYC Mayor’s Office of Data Analytics, NYC Mayor’s Office of Technology and Innovation, NYC’s Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications, NYC 311, NYC Parks, NYC Department of Transportation, NYC Department of Education, NYC Department of Health, and many others.