Data Informed Diplomacy

At the U.S. Department of State, data is at the heart of our work. Operating in the world’s most challenging environments and competing strategically on a global stage demand that data not only be produced, used, or stored, but leveraged as a strategic asset.

The launch of the Department’s first-ever Enterprise Data Strategy (EDS) [4 MB] helps ensure that our workforce has the right data, when and where they need it to achieve their mission. In order to ensure the strategy is actionable and relevant to the core priorities of the Department, the Enterprise Data and AI Council – comprised of bureau leaders and chaired by the Chief Data and AI Officer – will oversee an incremental implementation of the strategy over a three-year time horizon. This approach will bolster data analytics and management, activate governance, and build a data-savvy workforce while focusing on two Department priorities every six months.

Whether it is the repatriation of American citizens stranded abroad during the COVID-19 pandemic or coordination of international aid as it is rushed to countries struck by natural disaster, when American foreign affairs professionals are equipped with high-quality and timely data, they can help make the world safer, more just, and less divided. We invite you to explore this site to learn how the U.S. Department of State is making data a critical instrument of diplomacy.

Visit U.S. Department of State Open Data Plan for more information.

The Department of State is extending the Enterprise Data Strategy (EDS) until the end of FY 2025 while continuing to measure progress on EDS Goals and Objectives.  The results will be captured in an EDS Impact Assessment Report. The Department is preparing a follow-on strategy that combines the EDS and Enterprise AI Strategy (EAIS) to create the Department’s first-ever Enterprise Data and AI Strategy (EDAS), effective FY 2026.

The Geospatial Data Act (GDA) was signed into law, Oct. 5, 2018, and recognizes geospatial data as a critical component of the national infrastructure and economy. GDA identifies the Department of State as one of 16 covered agencies, thus requiring the Department to meet 13 responsibilities specified in the Act. As part of meeting GDA compliance, the Department published its first Geospatial Data Strategy (GDS) in September 2021. The Department’s geographer, residing in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, was designated as the senior agency official for geospatial information and leads the newly established Geospatial Data Act Working Group, formed under the auspices of the Department’s Enterprise Data Council.

The GDS establishes actionable goals and objectives that will expand the effective use of geospatial data and technologies across the Department. It is a living document—developed in conjunction with geospatial data users and stakeholders throughout the Department—that provides a foundational roadmap for the application, growth, maturation, and stewardship of geospatial data and analysis to support the Department’s varied missions.

The three-year vision of the GDS includes four strategic goals and 13 objectives. The goals include: increasing geospatial data sharing and accessibility; ensuring reliable geospatial data and tools for visualization and analysis; developing foundational geospatial data awareness to promote a sustained geospatial workforce; and developing a repeatable geospatial data reporting structure to meet statutory and policy requirements of the GDA.

The GDS provides a framework to improve collaboration across agencies, increase efficiency of operations, decision-making, and transparency, and provides a reporting mechanism for the Department’s investments in geospatial data. The GDS was written to complement the Department’s EDS and contains crosswalk tables that align the goals and objectives of these two strategic documents. Download the full document by clicking the button below.

The Department of State released its first-ever “Enterprise Artificial Intelligence Strategy FY 2024-2025:  Empowering Diplomacy through Responsible AI” (EAIS). The EAIS establishes a centralized vision for artificial intelligence (AI) innovation, infrastructure, policy, governance, and culture by inaugurating Department-wide guidance for the responsible and ethical design, development, acquisition, and appropriate application of AI.  

The EAIS centers on the vision statement, “The Department of State will responsibly and securely harness the full capabilities of trustworthy artificial intelligence to advance United States diplomacy and shape the future of statecraft.” To guide the Department towards its vision, four goals serve as foundational targets that will enhance the Department’s AI capabilities:  (1) Leverage Secure AI Infrastructure (2) Foster a Culture that Embraces AI Technology (3) Ensure AI is Applied Responsibly (4) Innovate.  Each Goal rests on specific objectives that encompass priorities identified by the Department’s AI leaders.  These relevant and achievable efforts will enable measurable advancement over the next two years. 

The Enterprise Data and AI Council (EDAC), in collaboration with the Bureau of Diplomatic Technology Center for Analytics (DT/CfA), launched the inaugural Data for Diplomacy Awards program in the spring of 2022 as way to encourage and reward the practice of data-informed diplomacy.The Department-wide program recognizes individuals and teams that make major strides in leveraging data as a strategic asset in support of the Department’s mission. Leaders with diverse expertise from across the Department help to ensure a balanced evaluation process. The awards fall into the following categories: 

In its first year, judges reviewed an impressive number of submissions from more than 40 Department bureaus and dozens of posts from across the globe. The number and superior quality of data-related projects demonstrates the ingenuity and eagerness of the workforce to help transform the Department into a data-centric organization.