NOAA and Demographic Data Collection

NOAA’s mission is supported by social science research. NOAA strives to understand and predict changes in climate, weather, oceans, and coasts, to share that knowledge and information with others, and to conserve and manage coastal and marine ecosystems and resources. Demographic and other economic and social data support NOAA’s ability to make more informed decisions concerning the effectiveness and equity of its programs, services, and policies by assessing how different groups access, and are affected by them and how they might respond to any proposed changes.
However, the collection of demographic data used to meet NOAA’s mission is not consistent within or among line offices. The objectives of this technical memorandum are to:

a) propose a potential definition of ‘demographic data’ for informal use within NOAA,
b) foster collaboration across NOAA to articulate best practices for the uses of demographic data to support NOAA’s mission, and
c) provide best practices guidance across NOAA on when and how to collect these data.

The Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center of NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service uses the NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-PIFSC series to disseminate scientific and technical information that has been scientifically reviewed and edited. Documents within this series reflect sound professional work and may be referenced in the formal scientific and technical literature.

Kleiber D, Terry J, Elliot S, Selgrath, J, et al 2024. NOAA and Demographic Data Collection U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum NOAA-TM-NMFS-PIFSC-163, 77 p.
https://doi.org/10.25923/kw71-b226