SMALL DATA AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT-INDIVIDUALS AT THE CENTER OF DATA-DRIVEN SOCIETIES

At the centre of data-driven societies are individuals and end-users who not only generate data, but also benefit from the outcomes of the data-driven development. Extensive work has been undertaken to understand and explore the challenges and potential impact of data, in particular Big Data, for the private as well as the public sectors. Similarly work has been undertaken within the domains of Personal Wormatics and life-logging, which has investigated the role of data, and specifically personal physical activity and health data towards improving the wellbeing of individuals. In this research we investigate the engagement of individuals in the use of data towards the achievement of the sustainable development imperatives as articulated in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The paper presents: the awareness levels of the participants with regards to the Sustainable Development Goals; their attitudes and perceptions around monitoring of social indicators; key considerations associated with data ownership, privacy and confidentiality of data, as well as sharing of data within the data ecosystem. The paper subsequently discusses how these finding could inform the implementation of small data tools to support the active engagement of individuals in data-driven societies.