Use government data to build digital tools with, by, and for the people.

The Opportunity Project is a program of the Census Open Innovation Labs at the U.S. Census Bureau.

Use TOP at Your Agency to Solve the Nation's Toughest Challenges

The Opportunity Project (TOP) offers a framework for agencies to facilitate collaboration between technologists and community advocates in order to rapidly design digital solutions for the public good.

Explore how agencies have used TOP to address national challenges:

Solutions Included

Ocean Plastics Story Map, Esri: storytelling with newly compiled data sets to provide new insights and solutions to the problem of ocean plastic pollution

Georgetown University Campus Plastic Initiative, Georgetown University Beeck Center: tracking plastic pollution on college campuses and educating students on its impact

The Ghost Gear Project, Harvard University Institute of Politics: visualizing the location of ghost fishing gear in our oceans with accompanying mitigation techniques

Lasting Impact

The Campus Plastic Initiative product resulted in the creation of a Georgetown student organization and greater emphasis on recycling and reduction of plastic pollution on campus

Blue ocean waves crashing into a rocky coastline.

Solutions Included

Puerto Rico Land Grid, Regrid: assessing the occupancy, condition, land use, and needs of all 1.5 million properties in Puerto Rico

Disaster Awareness Games, University of California Santa Barbara: gamifying emergency preparation for young adults

Sille, Datel Ovela: increasing stakeholders' awareness of likely catastrophic structural failure in their areas

Lasting Impact

The Sille product team fostered ongoing partnerships with FEMA, as well as with the Puerto Rican and NYC governments

Satellite image of a hurricane cloud over a coastline.

Solutions Included

City Builder, Citi Ventures: bringing transparency to the Opportunity Zone ecosystem for public and private investment

Inclusive Growth Score, Mastercard: ensuring community priorities inform Opportunity Zones strategies employed by decision-makers

Inclusive Development Dashboards, Burning Glass: helping workforce and economic development conveners to prioritize inclusive development in their regions

Lasting Impact

The Citi Ventures team, a 2019 Prize Challenge winner, has since participated in two additional sprints, continuing to build out the City Builder product by adding datasets and features

A neighborhood grid of buildings and streets as seen from above.

Ready to solve the nation’s biggest challenges?

Email TOP

How Does TOP Work?

Government and/or community organizations lead sprints and identify pressing, public-facing issues.

Government agencies recruit technologists, community leaders, and data experts to participate in a 12-week sprint challenge.

Tech teams create products and tools based on community feedback. User research and exploration are important steps during this process. Tech teams include industry start-ups, technologists from outside the government, and university students.

Learn more about the TOP process.

How to Get Started

We can help your organization identify the next steps to facilitate a successful TOP sprint. If your agency is interested in using the TOP framework to address national challenges, please email us. A member of the TOP team will be in touch within one week.

Ready to get started?

Email TOP