A gift to the government nerds of NOLA

This new Lens endeavor is pretty sweet.

Working with the Greater New Orleans Foundation, The Lens has received a $50,000 matching grant from the Knight Community Information Challenge to enable The Lens to create a searchable database of local  government contracts.

The grant program, part of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, aims to improve how people and governments interact by increasing access to local news and information. Ten community-based organizations around the country received awards.

The Lens will use the money to collect and upload as many local government contracts as possible and present them in a way that enables searching and cross-referencing with public officials and agencies. When possible, we’ll get our our information online. Otherwise, we’ll copy or scan the documents in person.

If this gets me a step closer to the Grand Unified Flow Chart Of Why Kevin Wildes and Norman Francis Are On Every Board, I'll be happy.