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New data portal for Southern Nevada unveiled

Updated October 26, 2017 - 4:29 pm

United Way of Southern Nevada has launched a new online research tool to provide data to nonprofits, government agencies, businesses, media and individuals to help “support and create positive social change in their communities.”

The platform, called Community Connect, is a free online tool that displays data across four main categories: demographics, education, financial stability and health and wellness. It further breaks down the statistics into 26 data sets, or “indicators,” that can be turned into charts, exported to spreadsheets or shared via social media. Data is also broken down by geographical location and year.

These data sets include demographic statistics such as ethnicity, gender, veteran status and foreign-born populations as well as data on household incomes, work status, unemployment rates, poverty rates, obesity percentages, infant mortality rates and more.

Elaina Mulé, United Way’s vice president of collective impact and social innovation, said the project was inspired by the organization’s own trouble collecting data from multiple spreadsheets, websites and platforms.

“Information is at the core of what we do at United Way,” Mulé said. “We use it to write our grant applications, we use it to inform what programs we decide to fund … and we use it as a critical piece of information to listen to the people that we serve.”

The tool is powered by MyResearcher, a data-tracking tool developed by Las Vegas-based Applied Analysis. The website automatically updates when new data is available.

Community Connect also provides individuals more information on how to donate money, volunteer or advocate for causes that interest them.

“We really do believe in data,” said Applied Analysis principal Jeremy Aguero. “We believe in its power, we believe in putting in the hands of people who can use it properly and that it can do remarkable things.”

Contact Madelyn Reese at mreese@viewnews.com or 702-383-0497. Follow @MadelynGReese on Twitter.

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