The MetroBoston DataCommon provides a wealth of information about the region’s people and communities through a variety of topics -- from arts and education to the environment and transportation. A resource for all those seeking to understand how the region is changing, it helps residents, stakeholders, planners, city and town officials, educators and journalists explore data and make informed decisions. We invite you to explore its data, community snapshots and create your own visualizations and reports.

Data Day is a free, biennial conference on using data and technology to drive community change. The upcoming conference will be held at Northeastern University on Friday, January 27th. At Data Day, nonprofit organizations, civic institutions and municipalities come together to see the latest in technology and tools and learn how other groups are using data. It is structured around a series of "how to" interactive workshops at three levels in which people who work with data will explain where they find useful data and how they use it. To register or for more information, visit the Data Day 2012 page.

The first training on how to use the MetroBoston DataCommon will be held on February 2, 2012 at the offices of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council at 60 Temple Place in downtown Boston. Attendees have included community leaders, city and town planners, government employees staff from non-profit organizations and research organizations, and many others. For more information and to register, click here.

MAPC's Annual Report is released in the form of an attractive, informative calendar. Each month highlights a particular trend or topic of regional significance in the Metropolitan Boston. Previous calendars have illustrated changes in land use patterns, aging patterns, drinking water contamination and more. Each calendar offers supplementary text to give readers added insight into the data. Go to the Regional Map Gallery to see more.