This training programme will enable participants to transform available water and sanitation data into effective stories which can influence advocacy and societal transformation.

Data influences every decision that we make. Information is required for managing every dimension of water and sanitation sector as well, be it access to the nearest public toilet, managing household wastewater and excreta, the amount of rainfall received, or how a city uses its groundwater etc. In recent years, our world has witnessed an information explosion in every field with data available just a few clicks away. However, the accuracy, accessibility, usability and communication of the available data is still a challenge. Also, how to use the available data for advocacy and influence is still unknown to many.

Access to specific data can help institutions and individuals improve upon existing practices or measures, or point us to answers or further questions which need to be addressed. How that data gets gathered, linked, interpreted, represented and communicated decides the impact it can create. Analysed and packaged well, it can be an excellent outreach tool, capable of making far-reaching influences and gaining leverage. This is essential since there is a vast potential audience with or without access to all this information. And therein exists a gap: at times what we say is not what the audience hears; at times what we say never even reaches/gets an audience.

Understanding this need for effective data communication, CSE’s School of Water and Waste at AAETI invites applications and nominations for its four-day residential training programme on urban water and sanitation data management, visualisation and outreach.

Content includes

1. Data sourcing – how to use smart tools and techniques to find the right data to tell your stories
2. Existing water and sanitation information platforms
3. Best practices for managing data
4. Communicating data – various platforms varying from public portals to professional platforms
5. Data visualisation tools and techniques — for news, reports, research papers, studies, proposals, etc to communicate effectively across multiple platforms
6. Influencing decisions – impactful communication and outreach, informed decision-making and effective governance
7. Institutional reformation – correct data pitching strategy for building support, fundraising and engaging with allies