Last month, our Impact Lead, John Halliwell, attended the 2026 Digital Footprints Conference in York. The event brought together academics, policymakers, government representatives and industry to explore the potential of digital data for public good.
In partnership with Smart Data Research UK (SDR UK), the first day showcased how smart data is driving innovation across health and wellbeing, digital society, sustainability, productivity and prosperity.
Exploring smart data in practice
Day one featured several of SDR UK’s data services. An introduction to the Smart Data Donation Service (SDDS) demonstrated how participants can request their data through platforms such as Google Takeout and donate it securely as a third-party platform.
SDDS supports citizens across the UK to obtain and understand their digital trace data, while also providing opportunities to enrich and contribute that data to scientific research.
The service is already being deployed within cohorts, including Understanding Society, while also supporting the development of new smart data cohorts.
The Geographic Data Service highlighted how geographic methodologies can be used to integrate diverse smart data sources. Presentations showcased compelling examples of geographical disparities, including how data on London’s night-time economy is informing policy through the narrative presentation of emerging insights.
These examples demonstrated how linking different types of data can support research into key social issues such as regional inequalities, access to opportunities, and outcomes for vulnerable populations.
Access to social media data in a rapidly evolving landscape
In her keynote, Amy Orben (University of Cambridge) focused on reclaiming data access in the digital age. Amy made a strong case for broadening access to social media data, particularly given the rapid pace of technological change.
For the research community, access to these data is essential to evaluate potential harms and to generate the robust evidence needed to design effective interventions.
Emerging research and ongoing challenges
On day two, flash talks showcased cutting-edge research using a wide range of digital footprint data, from household purchasing data to neighbourhood mobility indicators.
A plenary from Mark Green (University of Liverpool) explored how street-level imagery can be used to identify which communities are most exposed to fast food advertising.
This work reinforced existing evidence that food advertising directly influences eating behaviour, while also demonstrating the importance of triangulating digital footprint data with other sources. It highlighted the need for continued methodological innovation, particularly in addressing challenges around data representativeness.
This issue emerged throughout the conference, with researchers comparing digital footprint data with traditional sources such as census data to better understand and address selection bias.
Interactive sessions also provided hands-on opportunities to explore new tools, including a nutrient profile model calculator designed to support informed dietary decisions and compliance with legislation.
Reflections on shared challenges and opportunities
A key takeaway from the conference is that the digital footprints community faces many of the same challenges as the longitudinal population study community, particularly around data access and linkage, fragmented training provision, and the difficulty of building robust evidence at the pace required by policy.
As John Halliwell reflects:
“What stood out most was how closely the challenges faced by the digital footprints community mirror those we see in longitudinal population studies – from data access and linkage to the need for timely evidence to inform policy. There’s a real opportunity here to work together, combining these different types of data to answer complex research questions more effectively.”
These shared challenges point to significant opportunities for collaboration. As emerging work across the field demonstrates, bringing together digital footprint data and longitudinal approaches can unlock new insights and strengthen the evidence base needed to deliver real-world impact.
