This analysis examines potential alignment between PolicyEngine (a tax and benefit microsimulation tool) and organizations at Open Gov Hub, a coworking space in Washington, DC that PolicyEngine is considering joining. These organizations work in transparency, governance, development, and social justice, creating opportunities for in-person collaboration and partnership.
- 🟢 Strong: Direct alignment with PolicyEngine's core capabilities
- 🟡 Moderate: Some overlap with potential collaboration opportunities
- 🔴 Limited: Minimal direct alignment, though possible intersections
| Organization | Focus Area | Alignment | Key Collaboration Opportunities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global Integrity (Closed 2023) | Anti-corruption, governance reform | 🟢 Strong | Could have analyzed distributional effects of anti-corruption policies |
| Development Gateway | Data solutions for international development | 🟢 Strong | Integration into government decision-making tools, policy impact modeling for development programs |
| Open Government Partnership | Government transparency, citizen empowerment | 🟢 Strong | National Action Plans integration, transparent policy impact modeling, citizen engagement on reforms |
| POGO | Government oversight, accountability | 🟡 Moderate | Analyzing equity impacts of federal spending and policies under investigation |
| BRAC | Poverty alleviation, education, healthcare | 🟢 Strong | Social protection program design, graduation program effectiveness analysis, evidence-based advocacy |
| IMAGO Global Grassroots | Social impact, poverty transformation | 🟢 Strong | Supporting grassroots with policy analysis, scaling successful interventions through modeling |
| HOT (Humanitarian OpenStreetMap) | Disaster response mapping | 🟡 Moderate | Analyzing distributional impacts of disaster preparedness policies |
| PHR (Physicians for Human Rights) | Human rights documentation, health worker protection | 🔴 Limited | Health policy impacts on vulnerable populations |
| PTF (Partnership for Transparency) | Anti-corruption, civil society support | 🟢 Strong | Supporting CSO partners with policy analysis, evidence for anti-corruption reforms |
| Development Initiatives (Closed 2024) | Data-driven poverty reduction | 🟢 Strong | Would have been ideal partner for data-driven policy analysis |
| World Wide Web Foundation (Closed 2024) | Digital equality, internet access | 🟡 Moderate | Could have analyzed policy impacts of digital inclusion initiatives |
| Fair Trials | Criminal justice reform | 🔴 Limited | Economic policies' impact on criminal justice outcomes |
| Center for Open Data Enterprise | Open data for public good | 🟢 Strong | Integration into policy impact tools, federal agency policy analysis |
| Transparency & Accountability Initiative | Donor collaborative for accountability | 🟢 Strong | Supporting member organizations with policy analysis, evaluating funding effectiveness |
| Climate Justice Alliance | Environmental justice, Just Transition | 🟢 Strong | Distributional impacts of climate policies, Just Transition policy modeling |
| ADAPT | Analytics (unclear organization) | ❓ Unknown | Unable to determine |
| PEN America | Freedom of expression, anti-censorship | 🔴 Limited | Economic impacts of censorship on educational institutions |
| CoRe (Coalition for Integrity) | Anti-corruption, integrity promotion | 🟢 Strong | Policy impact analysis for anti-corruption reforms, transparent modeling |
| dgMarket | Government procurement transparency | 🟡 Moderate | Economic impacts of procurement transparency reforms |
| AccountabilityLab | Governance innovation, citizen engagement | 🟢 Strong | Country-level policy analysis, evidence-based governance reforms |
| FeedbackLabs | Community-centered feedback loops | 🟢 Strong | Analyzing policy impacts on feedback communities, evidence-based program design |
| Open Contracting Partnership | Public procurement reform | 🟢 Strong | Distributional impacts of procurement policies, equity effects of public spending |
Organizations with the strongest potential for collaboration with PolicyEngine share these characteristics:
- Data-driven approach to policy and governance
- Focus on transparency and accountability
- Poverty alleviation and social protection missions
- Evidence-based advocacy and reform efforts
- Government engagement and policy influence
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Development Gateway & Center for Open Data Enterprise: Natural partners for integrating PolicyEngine's microsimulation capabilities into broader data platforms and government decision-making tools.
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Open Government Partnership & Open Contracting Partnership: Could leverage PolicyEngine to demonstrate transparent policy impacts as part of their transparency initiatives.
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BRAC & Climate Justice Alliance: Would benefit from PolicyEngine's ability to model distributional impacts of social and climate policies on vulnerable populations.
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AccountabilityLab & FeedbackLabs: Could use PolicyEngine to ground community feedback and advocacy efforts with concrete policy impact analysis.
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PTF & Coalition for Integrity: PolicyEngine could support their anti-corruption efforts by transparently modeling the impacts of governance reforms.
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Priority Partnerships: Focus initial outreach on organizations with strong alignment and existing data/policy infrastructure (Development Gateway, OGP, CODE).
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Sector-Specific Collaborations:
- Poverty/Development: BRAC, IMAGO
- Climate Justice: Climate Justice Alliance
- Governance/Transparency: OGP, OCP, AccountabilityLab
- Data/Technology: Development Gateway, CODE
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Joint Initiatives: Consider developing:
- Policy impact dashboards for transparency initiatives
- Microsimulation tools for development programs
- Distributional analysis frameworks for climate policies
- Evidence generation for anti-corruption reforms
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Capacity Building: Offer training and support to help partner organizations integrate PolicyEngine's capabilities into their existing workflows and advocacy efforts.
Given that these organizations are co-located at Open Gov Hub, PolicyEngine would gain:
- Physical Proximity: Face-to-face collaboration opportunities with aligned organizations
- Network Effects: Access to shared events, workshops, and informal knowledge exchange
- DC Location: Strategic positioning near federal agencies and policymakers
- Community Resources: Shared infrastructure and potential for joint grant applications
- Cross-Pollination: Regular interaction could spark innovative applications of PolicyEngine's tools
With approximately 70% of Open Gov Hub organizations showing strong or moderate alignment with PolicyEngine's mission, joining this coworking space would provide exceptional opportunities for collaboration. The concentration of data-driven governance, transparency, and poverty-focused organizations creates an ideal ecosystem for PolicyEngine to expand its impact through partnerships and joint initiatives. The physical co-location would transform many of these potential collaborations into active, ongoing partnerships.