Code of conduct for sharing data in the social economy

Waag Futurelab and Commons Network are presenting the EU Code of Conduct for Data Sharing in the Social Economy this week in Brussels. Over the past nine months, Waag has overseen the process in which 21 European social economy organisations formed a code of conduct for sharing data. This was commissioned by the EU's Economic Directorate General (DG Grow).  

Code of Conduct for Data Sharing in the Social Economy

This week, Waag Futurelab and Commons Network present the EU Code of Conduct for Data Sharing in the Social Economy in Brussels. Over the past nine months, Waag has guided a process in which 21 European organisations from the social economy have developed a code of conduct for data sharing. This was commissioned by the EU's Economic Directorate General (DG Grow).

What is meant by social economy?

The term 'social economy' is not often used in Dutch, but what it means fits well with the ambitions of municipalities to realise 'broad prosperity'. Organisations that belong to the social economy according to the European Commission meet at least the following characteristics:

1. they are not primarily focused on profit
2. they focus on promoting the well-being of people, animals, plants and the planet
3. they are characterised by participatory and democratic governance

Organisations that belong to the social economy can be cooperatives, foundations, partnerships, and can be active in various economic sectors such as the service sector, industry, agriculture or fishery. Companies can also be part of the social economy but only if they reinvest their profits to promote well-being. Profit is therefore never a goal in itself.

Organisations in the social economy stand for development towards a more inclusive and sustainable economy. This fits in with the goals of the European Green Deal and that is the reason the European Commission wants to promote the growth of the social economy in various economic sectors. One of the ways in which the European Commission does this is by promoting data sharing in the social economy because data sharing leads to better cooperation, knowledge development and innovation. But data sharing can also undermine the social economy, if it is not done in accordance with the values and goals that characterise it. For this reason, a code of conduct has now been drawn up together with key organisations in the social economy from all over Europe. This code of conduct serves as a guideline for the development of data management and data governance that is appropriate for the social economy.

Code of conduct for data sharing

In Europe laws have already been developed that regulate the management of data, such as the law that protects privacy. However, a code of conduct for data sharing does more. The code of conduct for data sharing in the social economy is a list of values to which parties that share data commit themselves. It assists in forming a data sharing practice that fits with the values that characterize organizations in the social economy. 

In addition to the values, the code of conduct also provides insight into various data sharing models and practical guidelines to support parties that want to share data with each other, complete with checklists and consent forms. As a source of inspiration a chapter has been added with concrete examples of good data sharing practices. These can help with taking pratical steps to put the different values into practice, so data is shared and used in a good way.

The code was developed in collaboration with various stakeholders from the social economy in a series of interactive co-creation workshops, online sessions, literature research and interviews. Waag led four co-creation meetings in which representatives of the social economy put together a list of values that should be included in the code. The code describes values such as: democracy, life-centeredness, trust, self-determination, inclusivity, equity, co-opetition and data sufficiency. Waag also created descriptions of data sharing practices, based on interviews, which are included in the code of conduct as inspiring examples. Commons Network has conducted research into concrete data sharing models that fit the social economy, and offers practical guidance for parties that want to get started with these models.

Read the Code of Conduct

The code of conduct will be available on the European Commission website on 28 November. The official presentation will also take place on this day, where representatives of various organisations from the social economy will be present. More information about the event and the code of conduct can be found here.

Want to get started yourself? The code of conduct is intended for everyone involved in collecting, using or storing data. Organisations that are not yet part of the social economy can also use it!