In this multi-specialist panel, doctoral students from the CUNY Graduate Center will discuss how access to, and the experience of, long-term housing in NYC has and continues to change as a result of open data sources available in the city. Moderated by Sam O'Hana, the panel will include three presentations:

1. Holden Taylor, doctoral candidate in English and Organizer for the Brooklyn Eviction Defense Tenant Union, who will present work relevant to his dissertation on the issue of housing, including the use of open data for tenant organizing.

2. Ian G. Williams, LMSW, a doctoral student in Social Welfare who researches technology adoption, innovation diffusion, and human service organizations. Drawing from his training in critical data studies, professional experience in supportive housing property management, and personal familiarity with urban homesteading activism and reclaimed spaces in NYC, Ian will examine recent national discourse on squatters that often relied on sensational anecdotes and lack of comprehensive data, yet was widely successful an advancing a policy agenda that many advocates believe weakens tenant protections. Recent changes to New York State law regarding squatters, a city council bill seeking to codify reporting on squatter activities in NYC will be situated in relation to scholarship on homelessness, housing insecurity, and urban governance via dashboards and data infrastructures.

3. Sam O'Hana, doctoral candidate in English and Advising Fellow in Data Analysis and Visualization, who will discuss the publicly-available repositories of information (DHCR, HPD, DOB, DOF) that are necessary to challenge illegal deregulation of rent stabilized apartments in the city. He will share updates from a pending lawsuit against his landlord in the NYS Supreme Court.

Slides: https://bit.ly/nyc-sodata25-cunygc-housing