The Chicago survey and report are a part of a pilot project here at Civic News Company designed to support the emerging field of civic information: news organizations, libraries, schools, government agencies, individuals, and community groups coming together across the country to help people get the information they need. The “Civic Information Needs Census” is an opportunity to formalize coalitions of local civic information practitioners by providing a shared data set they can all work from, so that they can ultimately understand whether each of their efforts is successful.