Participatory Governance: Longform Work in Action

These case studies are an expansion of work written for AISP’s Toolkit for
Centering Racial Equity Throughout Data Integration Version 2.0. The
original Toolkit, released in 2020, catalyzed the formation of the Equity in
Practice Learning Community (EiPLC), a cohort-based technical
assistance initiative to put the Toolkit into practice in ten sites. The
updated Toolkit is the result of a year-long Participatory Action Research
(PAR) Project, and learnings from EiPLC cohorts.

The following briefs are examples of Work in Action, a term we use, rather than exemplar, to feature site-based work that is ongoing and rooted in
learning and humility. They describe the work of seven data integration
efforts; five are local, based at the city or county level, and two are
statewide. Each of these sites started small and expanded with purpose
and intention over many years of sustained effort. Four of these sites were members of the first cohort of the EiPLC. While these examples are impressive, what they are doing is not magic, but rather proof of hard and committed work. We acknowledge that work at the intersection of data infrastructure and racial equity is complicated and contextual, and not necessarily replicable; however, we hope these examples both inspire your efforts and provide proof that these hard things are doable–even in politically complex environments.