Familiarising Yourself with Data (and Why That’s Not as Scary as You Think)

​As part of the Poverty Stoplight Innovation Week, this session covers how data can feel intimidating: technical, abstract, and reserved for experts. But at its core, data is simply evidence: facts, observations, conversations, survey responses, patterns, and stories that can help us better understand the people and communities we serve.

​In this session, Ibrahima Ball, Program Data Analyst for International Programs at Unbound, and Davide Gallo, founder of Vetta, will explore how civil society organizations can build confidence in using data without losing sight of the human realities behind it. Drawing on Ibrahima’s experience connecting program data with the lived experiences of families, and Davide’s work helping entrepreneurs use AI to test ideas and build more effectively, the conversation will show how data can become a practical tool for learning, decision-making, and impact.

​Together, they will discuss how to start with meaningful questions, interpret evidence with context, avoid common traps, and use data to test assumptions rather than follow it blindly. Participants will leave with a simple, human-centered approach to using data: ask, look for evidence, interpret with context, decide, and learn.

​This session will be held in English with simultaneous live Spanish translation.