The Digital Governance Standards Institute (DGSI) is announcing the official publication of CAN/DGSI 121:2025 – Metadata Requirements for Urban Datasets, a new National Standard of Canada that supports better city building through improved urban data sharing and governance.
As communities across Canada face urgent challenges such as the housing crisis, climate change, and aging infrastructure, access to high quality urban data has never been more critical. CAN/DGSI 121:2025 helps cities and communities better organize, describe, and share the datasets that inform urban development, infrastructure investments, and service delivery. This standard enables municipal governments, researchers, urban planners, and community organizations to use data more effectively in decision making and policy development.
With regards to urban datasets Bart Gajderowicz, The Urban Data Research Centre at the School of Cities, University of Toronto said “many were being created by municipalities, citizens, academics, and others that were of very high quality but were hard to find. Publishing and making urban datasets searchable and usable required metadata unique to urban datasets.”
The standard introduces a six-level metadata framework specifically designed for urban datasets. It simplifies the process of describing what a dataset contains, who owns it, how it can be accessed, and how to assess its quality. By making urban datasets easier to find and use, the standard helps cities unlock the value of existing data, break down silos, and support more integrated and responsive approaches to urban planning.
The framework includes:
- A tiered structure that prioritizes the most essential information first
- Clear guidance on data ownership, access conditions, and stewardship
- Special considerations for Indigenous data sovereignty and community-controlled data
- Compatibility with global metadata models like DCAT and DQV
- Support for privacy, quality metrics, and trust building in data reuse
By improving how urban datasets are published and catalogued, CAN/DGSI 121:2025 provides a powerful tool for tackling complex, data driven issues. Municipalities and housing authorities can use the framework to better manage data on zoning, land use, housing availability, transportation patterns, and community needs, ultimately helping to guide more informed, equitable, and efficient responses to housing demand and affordability.
“This standard helps bridge a longstanding gap in urban data governance,” said Professor Mark Fox, Associate Director of the Urban Data Centre at the School of Cities, University of Toronto. “It ensures that valuable urban data often created by municipalities, academics, and citizens is no longer lost in siloed systems or difficult to find. By standardizing how this data is described, shared, and understood, we are enabling better decision-making and fostering transparency, equity, and innovation in cities across Canada.”
Developed by DGSI’s Technical Committee 6 on Connected Cities, the standard reflects the contributions of over 50 experts from across Canada’s urban data and smart cities ecosystem. It was informed by research from the Urban Data Research Centre at the University of Toronto and shaped through a national public review process.
Download the Standard
CAN/DGSI 121:2025 – Metadata Requirements for Urban Datasets is now available for download HERE
Get involved
The DGSI’s development process is collaborative and open to all, and anyone interested in contributing to the development of digital governance standards is encouraged to get involved. For more information on how to participate, contact:
Darryl Kingston
Executive Director
Digital Governance Standards Institute
darryl.kingston@dgc-cgn.org
For further details or media inquiries, please contact:
Shyra Wells
Communications and Knowledge Mobilization Lead
Digital Governance Council
shyra.craig@dgc-cgn.org
About the Digital Governance Standards Institute
The Digital Governance Standards Institute develops digital technology governance standards fit for global use. The Institute works with experts, as well as national and global partners and the public to develop national standards that reduce risk to Canadians and Canadian organizations adopting and using innovative digital technologies in today’s digital economy. The Institute is an independent division of the Digital Governance Council. To learn more about the organization and its initiatives, visit www.dgc-cgn.org or contact info@dgc-cgn.org.