On March 7, The Iron Yard collaborated with the White House (yes, THAT White House) for the launch of the Opportunity Project. The goal of the project is to make data not only more accessible, but also more digestible so communities can solve their problems -- think housing, transportation and employment issues.

The Iron Yard is committed to using the Opportunity Project data in its curricula and student projects, which means their students will use the data to create apps and tools that are civic-minded and address their community’s specific needs.

We can’t be the only ones who think the Opportunity Project is the coolest, right? Here’s why we think you should be pretty stoked about it, too:

1. Data is AWESOME. You know what you can do with data? Just about anything. Being able to get data about our communities means we’ll have the information we need to diagnose problems and solve them. If you’re one of those people who love data, you’ll want to check out The Iron Yard’s Data Science immersive course. (And while you’re at it, check out our data science guide!)

2. The Administration wants to hear from YOU. The Opportunity Project features a call to action; all you have to do is answer it. According to the White House Fact Sheet on The Opportunity Project, they’re calling on the public (aka you) to “develop new tools, offer additional sources of data, deepen community engagement through the use of the data, and other actions. We want to hear about what new steps you are taking or programs you are implementing to address these topics.” Ideas + coding skills = positive community change. (And if you’re still trying to build those coding skills, you’re on the right path.)

3. You can play a role in shaping the FUTURE. Addressing problems in our communities means a better future for everyone. Every community is different and has different issues, that’s why being able to use community-specific data to identify (and solve) problems is huge. It’s also why bringing together different private companies (like Redfin and Zillow) and multiple coding bootcamps (like The Iron Yard), non-profits, local government organizations and academic institutions to help make this idea a reality makes perfect sense.

We’ve gotta say, we’re pretty pumped about the Opportunity Project and have high hopes for what it will do for our communities. It’s like The Iron Yard’s CEO Peter Barth read our minds when he said:

“The White House has done an incredible job gathering the data for the Opportunity Project and I am confident that by encouraging our students to use the data in their group work and final projects we will see a variety of creative solutions to some of our communities’ biggest challenges.”

Learn more about the Opportunity Project here.