clients / case studies / non-profit

International Youth Foundation

Goal

Collate, digest and present for analysis multi-dimensional data regarding community investment in youth

Solution

A three dimensional data visualization model, where the dimensions of the data could be easily modified, which quickly demonstrated where any given community strongly supported, or lack support, for youth support programs

Results

Introduction

The International Youth Foundation was analyzing community programs for youth support.  So they would collect data on multiple organizations and community programs, multiple grants and initiatives within a foundation, multiple policies and pieces of legislation for community(ies).

They needed to rapidly and easily input and change data sets for analysis.  They wanted to depict the data graphically, in three dimensions, to rapidly and intuitively analyze community investment in youth (e.g., where the community programs were relatively strong and where were there "holes" in the support).  

 What did we do?

  • Built a solution to quickly and easily form three-dimensional ‘Cube’ models that represent the investment in Youth for any given organization or community
  • An overall community "CubePrint" was formed by a specifying the three axes, which then quickly populated a set of smaller "cubes" (each representing data points) associated with that community's (or organization's) data.
    • Since far more than 3 dimensions are used to model any community program, the system quickly and easily allows the axes to be changed. E.g., in one moment, the model can be viewing a ‘CubePrint’ for Ages Serviced, Geography, and Quality of Service; in the next moment it could be Ages Serviced, Quality and Level of Funding
    • Where the Cube was solid, the community had strong programs
    • Where the Cube had holes (like swiss cheese), the community was lacking programs
    • Colors repreented the relative strength
  • Models depict where the community or organization is well-serviced, and where they could improve
  • Models form the basis for decisions for investment in community programs for Youth
  • ‘Cube’ allows user can zoom on individual cube blocks of each Cube Print to get detail of the summary data creating that Cube block.
  • An intuitive web-based utility is available to administrators for inputting data
  • The user can print the ‘CubePrint’ and/or the associated detail data

How did we do it?

  • Application allows analysis of diverse and modifiable data sets including age ranges, operating hours, demographics serviced, geographical areas, services provided, funding, etc.
  • Metrics can be quantitative (e.g., operating hours) or qualititative (quality of service provided)
  • Axis can be discrete (ages 1,2,3..) or groupings (infants, toddlers, children, young adults, etc.)
  • Since far more than 3 dimensions are used to model any community program, the system quickly and easily allows the axes to be changed. E.g., in one moment, the model can be viewing a ‘CubePrint’ for Ages Serviced, Geography, and Quality of Service; in the next moment it could be Ages Serviced, Quality and Level of Funding
  • In order to ensure that no data cubes on the inside of the CubePrint were obscured, the CubePrint could be rotated and the axes could "slide", so the normal "inside" of the cube could be brought to the forefront for review.   (Without a way to "see inside", a CuebPrint might be solid on the outside by hollow inside, which would imply the Youth Programs were lacking support along some critical dimensions).  Though easier to visualize than describe, the point is that Ephibian delivered an easy mechanism for the Users to see and analyze all of the data cubes that made up the overall CubePrint. 

What was the result?

The Foundation received a very understandable and flexible tool to analyze --- and discuss with community leadership --- the areas where youth are being well-serviced, and not well-serviced, in any given community or organization.  This allowed them to formulate very clear and data-backed arguments for specific programs for youth in specific communities.