Terms of reference

Draft terms of reference for runapp.

The terms of reference below have been proposed but not yet formally adopted by runapp

Objective

The objective of this document is to set out the purpose for the founding of the R Users Network of Australian Public Policy (runapp) and lays out its intended objectives as a guide to the committee and the membership.

Purpose of the group

Data analysis is becoming increasingly important in public policy and the public sector. R is a key tool used for data analysis. But, for a number of years, the R user community in public policy has operated in isolation. There are a number of R groups within bigger organisations (such as the PC and RBA) but their presence across the board has been small and limited. There are immense benefits to community R organisations as has been seen in the success of R user groups such as R-Ladies, ropensci and ozunconf.

Underpinned by the appreciation of open source tools, these groups and organisations are aimed at fostering a deeper understanding of R and building a community of users who might give back. It is with this ethos that the group was created. 

runapp supports an inclusive and vibrant community of R users working in public policy and the public sector by curating resources for using R effectively; developing and maintaining packages for common tasks; and supporting more efficient and reproducible data analysis in public policy.

We do this by encouraging the take-up of R by people working in Australian public policy and the public sector through:

• Creating R resources that are relevant to both the tasks commonly undertaken by policy and public sector analysts, including resources that are specific to the use of Australian data;

• Hosting workshops, seminars and other events to spread information about the use of R and for sharing tips and tricks;

• Providing a forum for code reviews, technical discussions, and advice for those who might not work in an organisation with many R coders or technical colleagues;

• Identifying and developing packages that will be useful for users; and

• Maintaining a website and other communications channels like Slack to encourage communication among members about how to solve common R problems and common problems encountered when conducting data analysis in the public sector in Australia.