1. Introduction / Digital Twinning
Digital Twin(ning)
“If the data flows between an existing physical object and a digital object, and they are fully integrated in both directions,
this constituted the reference “Digital Twin”. A change made to the physical object automatically leads to a change in the
digital object and vice versa.” (Fuller et al. 2020)
Role of law in Digital Twinning: models are linked to people and if you have four different datasets it is difficult to
communicate with each other.
Open Urban Data Governance is about:
- Urban Data
- Open Data
- Data Governance
Urban data
“Graphic and alphanumeric records with urban spatial reference, considering highly accurate scales of analysis and
originating information necessary for understanding, knowledge and decision making in the fields of urbanism and urban
planning”
Open data (https://opengovdata.org/)
1. Data must be complete (all public data is made available. Public data is data that is not subject to valid privacy,
security or privilege limitations)
2. Data must be primary (data is as collected at the source, with the highest possible level of granularity, not in
aggregate or modified forms)
3. Data must be timely (data is made available as quickly as necessary to preserve the value of the data)
4. Data must be accessible (data is available to the widest range of users for the widest range of purposes)
5. Data must be machine processable (data is reasonably structured to allow automated processing)
6. Access must be non-discriminatory (data is available to anyone, with no requirement of registration)
7. Data formats must be non-proprietary (data is available to anyone, with no requirement of registration)
8. Data must be license-free (data is not subject to any copyright, patent, trademark or trade secret regulation.
Reasonable privacy, security and privilege restrictions may be allowed)
9. Compliance must be reviewable (the contact person must be designated to respond to people trying to use the data
and the contact person must be designated to respond to complaints about violations of the principles)
10. The work shall be available as a whole and at no more than a reasonable reproduction cost (the work must be
provided as a whole and at no more than a reasonable one-time reproduction cost, and should be downloadable via
the Internet without charge)
Or simply: data without any restrictions in the (re-)use and provided free of charge
Governance
“The sum of the many ways in which individuals, institutions, public and private, manage their common affairs. It is the
continuing process through which conflicting or diverse interest may be accommodated and cooperative action taken”.
(Commission on Global Governance, 1995)
It is the way rules, norms and actions are structured, sustained, regulated and held accountable. (Wikipedia, 2002)
, 2. Open Data Legislation
Role of law and organization in Digital Twinning:
Many facets:
● Law and organization to ensure harmonized implementation of DT at a national level
● Law promoting access and reuse of data
● Law to control access and reuse of data
How easy is it to access a dataset?
Access perspectives:
● Physical access
● Legal access
● Financial access
● Technical access
● Intellectual access
Examples: paywalls, privacy, not user-oriented: language, cookies and data for data (personal, email).
Open data pros
● Easy to cooperate
● Free for all
● Can be used for any purpose
● Transparency/accountability
Open data legislation
● Promoting access
● Promoting sharing
● Promoting re-use
-
Legislation promoting access
At national level:
● Public records act/Freedom of information act
● Domain-specific access acts: Law on cadastre, Law on companies register, Law on statistical data, Law on
meteorology, etc.
At European Union level:
● Access Directive: Directive 2003/4/EC on public access to environmental information (EU implementation of
Aarhus Convention) & other Environmental directives (e.g. Natura 2000, Marine framework, Water framework)
Dutch public records act (Wet open overheid)
● Right to access public information
● Publish the information in electronic format, machine-readable open format, metadata
● Publish the information pro-actively (not after a request)
● Anyone can request information without explanation
● Decision with 4 weeks (+2 weeks)
● Copies of documents: max. the cost of material on which the information is stored
No access if other interests prevails
● International relations
● Economic/financial interest of the state
● Privacy
● Protection of the environment
● Competition sensitive information
● Criminal prosecution