1. UNECE Statistical Division
Dissemination and Communication Standards and Issues: State of the Art in the UNECE Region
UNECE Statistical Division

2. Contents Existing standards Main issues Current activities
17 January 2019 2

3. Making Data Meaningful
Series of guides prepared by experts in statistical communication
Endorsed by the Bureau of the Conference of European Statisticians
2 volumes available, 2 in preparation
Free downloads from UNECE web site
Paper copies on request

4. Part 1 – A Guide to Writing Stories about Numbers
Released in 2006
Published in English and Russian
Spanish and Croatian translations available

5. Why should I read this?
The first point is make sure there is a story to tell. The idea is to think in terms of issues or themes.
A technical report is not a story. Conducting a survey is not a story. The release of a publication on women and men is not a story.
The results and findings are the story. Focus on how what the information means to people. If readers are able to relate the information to important events in their life, the article becomes a lot more interesting. 5

6. Part 2 – A Guide to Presenting Statistics
Published in 2009
Available in English and Russian
Examples of good and bad practice for presenting data

7. Good
Good table that follows all the guidelines. But not the best way of presenting these data – not easy to identify the patterns.

8. Better
Much easier to see and register the patterns. The users shouldn’t have to find the patterns in the data – it’s our job to display them in a way that is easy to grasp.
As this example shows, a chart is a very powerful to communicate a key finding or a message.

9. Keep it Simple!
3D charts = bad practice!

10. Part 3 – A guide to Communicating with the Media
To be published in English at the end of November 2010
Paper copies and Russian version by early 2011

11. Allies or enemies?

12. Key points
Many journalists are uncomfortable with numbers – they find data boring
... but data contain stories
Statisticians need to help journalists to extract those stories to communicate more effectively with the public and inform society

13. Part 4 – A Guide to Improving Statistical Literacy
In preparation
Expected release date – end 2011 / early 2012

14. Main Issues (1) How to manage communication activities?
Good communication is essential, particularly during financial crises
Are statisticians the best communicators?
Ethics and independence
Different practices on pre-release of data

15. Main Issues (2) New communication approaches Pricing and licenses
Data visualisation tools
Social networks – blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube - Which are the most cost-effective?
Google – partner or competitor?
Pricing and licenses
Data free of charge?
Data re-use by 3rd parties?

16. Current Activities (1)
UNECE Work Sessions on Statistical Communication
Annual meetings, open to all UN countries
Next meeting: Geneva, 29 June – 1 July 2011
International Marketing and Output Database Conference
Annual conferences
Next one: Lisbon, September 2011

17. Current Activities (2) Eurostat groups OECD
Sponsorship on Communication
Dissemination Working Group
OECD
Seminars on “Turning Statistics into Knowledge”
Cape Town December 2010  

18. Summary Many different activities in this area
Very dynamic, fast-moving
Importance of coordination and standardisation – but also flexibility
Value of sharing experience and good practices

19. Questions?