Analytics for a Better World 2025-2028 Strategy

Discover the in-depth Analytics for a Better World Strategy 2025-2028 Strategy!

Our vision in short

Analytics for a Better World (ABW) is a non-profit organization that collaborates with mission-driven organizations worldwide to use cutting-edge analytics and data science to maximize their impact. Founded in 2022 by the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and ORTEC, ABW harnesses academic and industry expertise to bridge a crucial gap. While analytics and AI have revolutionized business, their transformative potential for social good remains untapped mainly in the nonprofit sector.

The urgency for ABW’s approach is clear: with only 17% of global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on track and billions of people lacking access to healthcare, safe water, or climate resilience, nonprofits face shrinking funding and growing challenges. Data-driven innovation is proven to vastly improve impact and efficiency; however, most nonprofits lack the skills, tools, and resources needed to unlock these benefits. ABW fills this gap, showing that every dollar invested in analytics for social good can yield up to thirty times its value in impact.

Over the past three years, ABW has delivered substantial improvements across diverse sectors. For example, our work with The Ocean Cleanup increased plastic collection rates by over 60% and halved the time and cost to reach their mission. ABW’s analytics have saved billions in climate adaptation, expanded healthcare access for hundreds of thousands in countries such as Timor-Leste, Kenya, Armenia, and Vietnam, and vastly improved pandemic response for millions in Nepal with the World Health Organization. Beyond projects, we have trained hundreds of nonprofit fellows and built a thriving community of changemakers.

Drawing on the lessons of recent years, responding to shifts in the nonprofit landscape, and building on our proven track record, ABW will enter the 2025–2028 period with renewed focus and purpose captured in its strategy ‘Analytics to Amplify: Unlocking the Potential of Data for Global Impact’. We are dreaming big: by 2035, we will have created a worldwide movement, where every nonprofit can harness the power of analytics and AI to deliver transformative, scalable impact on society’s biggest challenges, accelerating progress towards the SDGs and improving the lives of hundreds of millions.

To drive scalable and enduring impact, we are advancing four interconnected strategic objectives that reflect our unique value proposition: Apply, Strengthen, Mobilize and Sustain.

1. Apply – Turning Data into Impact

By ensuring that evidence-based tools are embedded into nonprofit operations (such predictive and optimization models and open-source products), and by conducting tailored research projects, we help organizations move from insights to action, amplifying their ability to achieve their mission. We ensure that learning leads to measurable change.

2. Strengthen – Building Data Science Capacity for Impact

We ignite, inspire and encourage mission-driven organizations to use data as a core asset. Through hands-on training to upskill staff, open-source tools, mentorship and data leadership development, we enhance the data-literacy and capability of nonprofits so they can apply analytics to real-world challenges.

3. Mobilize – Activating a Global Movement for Analytics for Good

We foster a global community of industry data scientists, nonprofits, academics, and changemakers united around analytics for good. Through collaboration, knowledge-sharing and awareness raising, we bring together a vibrant community focused on using analytics to contribute to systemic change.

4. Sustain – Strengthening Our Organization for Scalable Impact

To support long-term impact, we invest in our team, establish strong internal systems, pursue sustainable funding, and forge strategic partnerships. We cultivate a resilient and adaptive organization by securing diverse resources, fostering a culture of learning and equity, and building deep collaborations that fuel innovation and growth.

Together, these strategic objectives position ABW to deliver meaningful, enduring outcomes at scale by helping mission-driven organizations use data to solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

*We use the terms mission-driven organizations, NGOs, and nonprofits interchangeably to refer to organizations whose primary purpose is to create positive impact rather than generate profit. Our focus on working with these organizations stems from our commitment to using analytics and AI to drive meaningful change and contribute to the greater good.

ABW’s Strategic Vision 2025-2028

Analytics for a Better World (ABW) is transforming how mission-driven organizations leverage data science to amplify their impact. Our vision is clear: unlocking the potential of analytics for people who make the world a better place. As we enter the first year of our 2025-2028 ‘Analytics to Amplify: Unlocking the Potential of Data for Global Impact’ strategic period, we’re excited to share our roadmap, that builds on our achievements and maps out an ambitious course forward.

Who we are: Analytics for a Better World

ABW was co-founded by UvA and ORTEC in 2022 to bridge a critical gap: while analytics and AI are transforming business, their potential for social good remains largely untapped by nonprofits. UvA brought academic excellence and a drive to translate research into real-world solutions; ORTEC contributed decades of analytics expertise and a commitment to impact. Together, they launched ABW to operationalize the vision that analytics can—and must—be harnessed for the greater good.

The Case for Urgency and Opportunity

With decades of effort, only 17% of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are on track, with just five years left to achieve them. The scale of the challenge is huge: 3.16 billion people cannot reach a healthcare facility within an hour’s walk, over 4.4 billion people in low-income countries lack access to safe drinking water, and climate change has inflicted $525 billion in losses on the world’s most vulnerable economies in just two decades. Meanwhile, the economic cost of plastic pollution reaches up to $19 billion each year. ABW’s last three years have shown that applying analytics can play a crucial and accelerating role in combating these challenges, we see much potential and opportunities for impact.

At the same time, the context for mission-driven organizations is tough. Funding is under increasing pressure, with major donors like USAID and the EU reducing their support. This means nonprofits should do more with less, whilst the complexity and urgency of global challenges grow. Simultaneously, the speed of AI developments is increasing. Still, many nonprofits have yet to develop their data maturity. Or a framing that emphasizes that there are strengths that will only be scaled through (3.5M data for social impact jobs are needed), tools, and capabilities to harness these technologies. We think traditional approaches are no longer enough. We see much potential and opportunities for the nonprofit sector to start utilizing analytics in response to these challenges.

Analytics and data science offer a path forward. Organizations that prioritize data-driven innovation are four times more likely to achieve their goals, and every dollar invested in data systems can yield a thirtyfold return in social value (an ROI of US$32). The opportunity is clear: we cannot afford to leave the power of analytics untapped. If we fail to act now, we miss a big opportunity to help millions more people in need, and the world will miss its chance to achieve the SDGs. We believe in applying analytics to accelerate our progress.

Our Impact Journey

In just three years, ABW projects have proven that analytics can drive transformative impact across sectors. These results are not one-off successes; they are scalable models that can be replicated and adapted globally.

Cleaning Our Oceans

Our collaboration with The Ocean Cleanup yielded an optimized routing approach that increased plastic collection by over 60% compared to previous strategies. As highlighted by The Ocean Cleanup’s CEO, this optimization will halve both the time (from 10 to 5 years) and costs (from 7.5 billion to 4 billion) needed to achieve their mission.

Strengthening Climate Adaptation

Our work on optimizing dike heights resulted in approximately 7.8 billion euros in cost savings while maintaining high protection standards for critical regions.

Optimizing Pandemic Response

Our collaboration with the WHO to optimize COVID testing labs in Nepal demonstrated that coordinated sample transfers could reduce delayed samples from 21.4% to 0%, potentially impacting 3 million people. Beyond these direct impacts, we’ve supported 14+ students in 2024, trained 200 fellows from 60 different organizations, and created 43 classes and 29 webinars available on YouTube. Our community now exceeds 4,800 LinkedIn followers with 2,000 newsletter subscribers.

From a Proven Approach to Impact at Scale

Having demonstrated the transformative potential of analytics for nonprofits, we are now focused on scaling our model. This requires two shifts: overcoming sector-wide barriers such as limited data skills, low awareness, and fragmented solutions; and concentrating our efforts where we can have the most systemic, high-leverage impact.

In the last three years we’ve proven the impact potential of analytics for nonprofits. Now we’re at a point where we can scale our impact even further. There’s an opportunity to achieve more with what we do. There are two things required: first we need to overcome some nonprofit sector wide barriers for analytics to have scalable impact, and secondly, we need to create focus. To achieve scalable, lasting impact, ABW is advancing four interconnected strategic objectives: Apply, Strengthen, Mobilize, and Sustain.

Strategic Objective 1: Apply – Turning Data into Impact

We work side by side with mission driven organizations to embed data into their daily decision making and long-term strategies. Through co-designed analytics projects, digital transformation initiatives and tailored research projects, we help nonprofits move beyond intuition to evidence-based impact. Our solutions are not only innovative; they’re practical, scalable, and sustainable. Whether building predictive tools, or open-source products, we ensure that every solution serves a real-world purpose and can be maintained by the communities they’re meant to help. We believe that when organizations apply data with purpose, they multiply their ability to achieve impact.

Strategic Objective 2: Strengthen – Building Data Capacity for Impact

To unlock the transformative power of data: we equip organizations with knowledge and skills. Through immersive training, leadership initiatives, and mentorship, we cultivate a data-driven ecosystem. This learning journey helps nonprofit professionals and aspiring changemakers to confidently use analytics for the causes they serve. We collaborate with universities and educational institutions to develop programs that merge data science with the realities of social and humanitarian work, ensuring that data expertise is accessible, relevant, and purpose-driven.

Strategic Objective 3 – Activating a Global Movement for Analytics for Good

Our goal is not just to create isolated success but to fuel a global movement. We mobilize a vibrant and inclusive community of data scientists, innovators, academics, and nonprofit leaders who believe in the power of analytics for good. By sharing knowledge, co-creating solutions, and hosting exchanges such as global events or roundtables, we foster a culture of collaboration and mutual learning. We elevate stories of impact and champion the open sharing of tools, insights, and good practices. Mobilizing this network means that solutions spread, ideas grow, and momentum builds, ensuring that analytics becomes a common good in the service of the world’s most urgent challenges.

Strategic Objective 4: Sustain – Strengthening our Organization for Scalable Impact

To drive meaningful and lasting change, we must invest in our team, have reliable systems, forge trusted partnerships, and secure sustainable funding. That means building the internal systems, talent, and financial resilience needed to scale our mission. We prioritize strategic fundraising—securing diverse, values-aligned sources of income from donors and partners—to ensure sustainability without compromising on impact. Equally essential is forging strategic, long-term partnerships with donors, academic institutions, tech leaders, and fellow changemakers. These relationships expand our reach, deepen our expertise, and unlock new opportunities for innovation and co-creation.

Through diversified funding models, transparent operations, and a culture of trust, we position ourselves and our partners. At the same time, we nurture a culture of collaboration, learning, and equity within our team. Through inclusive leadership, clear processes, and opportunities for growth, we allow our people to do their best work. By strengthening our organization, we ensure that we are not effective today, while we focus on years to come.

Why Our Strategic Objectives Enable Scaling, and How They Interact

As we move into the 2025–2028 period, ABW is ready to grow—not for growth’s sake, but for the sake of those we serve. With clarity, partnership, and purpose, we will help nonprofits not only keep pace with the data revolution, but lead it. Our four interconnected strategic objectives: Apply, Strengthen, Mobilize and Sustain are essential on their own—but together, they form a powerful system for change.

We Apply analytics for impact – working hand-in-hand with nonprofits to turn ideas and potential into strategy, and strategy into scalable solutions. It’s in this space that data comes alive: not as an abstract concept, but as a living part of how missions are delivered, and lives are improved. Tailored research projects increase the impact and help prove approaches. Strengthen is where scalable transformation is enabled. By building capacity across the impact sector through training, mentorship, and coaching, we are ensuring that knowledge is no longer a barrier to the use of analytics. Learning alone isn’t enough. Mobilize takes this work beyond individual organizations and into a growing global movement. We bring together practitioners, researchers, technologists, and advocates who believe that analytics should serve the common good. By sharing tools, insights, and stories of impact, we help solutions travel further and faster—and ensure that breakthroughs in one place can benefit communities. Finally, to do all this at scale and over time, we must Sustain. This means strengthening our internal systems, building a resilient team, and forging lasting partnerships with funders, allies, and institutions who share our values. Sustainability is not just financial—it’s operational, relational, and cultural. It’s about creating an organization that’s as committed to learning and adaptation as it is to results.

These four strategic objectives are not parallel tracks. They are deeply interconnected—each reinforcing the others. We cannot drive adoption without learning, or sustain impact without community, or mobilize a movement without a strong and focused core. Together, they form a virtuous cycle: one that enables us to reach further, move faster, and go deeper in our mission to democratize data for good.