“Are there many like me?”, “Am I doing well?”, and “Who can help me?” The SVV online service, consisting of a web app and a data server, sets out to offer answers to questions like these. By entering their own data (e.g. such as residential area, gender, age or place of birth), users can see where lots of people in the same target group live on the interactive maps provided. The system also allows inquiries about incomes.
A click on the “Who can help me?” tab displays aid projects and social integration assistance programmes in the area. While statistical data is normally presented in the form of individual tables, SVV users can access a wide variety of different datasets via the Styrian Government’s official homepage. The platform enables them to view the data in varying degrees of detail and link them according to their own interests and needs. The use of non-personal data drawn from the residential register allows for a factual approach to the subject of diversity, free from stereotyping and prejudices.
The application has been awarded several prizes: it received the Best Demo Award at the 15th International Conference on Knowledge Technologies and Data-driven Business 2015 in Graz and an award at the open4data challenge 2016 of the Austrian government. The code for the web app has been released as open source software. The project aims to make a substantial contribution to social cohesion in Styria in keeping with the aims of Styria’s “Charter for Living Together in Diversity”.