Sites We Like

Projects we respect and visit

Canada Observatory isn’t the only non-partisan, source-cited public data site. Below are projects we respect and think are worthy of a visit.

Role models

• Our World in Data: a notable leader in open, rigorous, well explained data publishing, covering global questions.
• USAFacts: a non-partisan, government-data-only portrait of the United States, with a source link on every figure. The closest thing to Canada Observatory’s mission, one country south.

Canada

• CanadaSpends: a searchable database and visual tools for exploring what Canadian governments spend, built from official public records. Covers federal spending in depth, plus provincial, municipal, and First Nations finances.
• CensusMapper: zoomable maps of any Canadian census variable. The deepest Canada census mapping available anywhere.
• Statistics Canada’s Quality of Life Hub: the official well-being framework: 90+ indicators on prosperity, health, society, environment, and good governance, from the agency that collects the data.

International data explorers

• OECD Data Explorer and the OECD Well-being Data Monitor: the upstream home of most of our peer comparisons, and dashboards of how life is going across the OECD.
• World Bank Open Data: free, global, CC-licensed indicators; the source of our WHO- and UN-derived health comparisons.

Science

• nullschool earth: an exploration of the Earth’s atmosphere and ocean in real-time.
• FireSmoke.ca: interactive forecasts of wildfire smoke and ground-level PM2.5 across Canada and the United States, produced by the University of British Columbia’s weather forecast research team and supported by provincial, territorial, and federal agencies.

A listing here is our genuine recommendation, nothing more — there are no partnerships or endorsements in either direction.