Common Impact Data Standard
The Common Impact Data Standard (CIDS) is an RDF-based data ontology for representing impact models, outcomes, indicators, and reported results so they can be exchanged as impact data capsules across organizations and funders.
An impact data capsule is a JSON-LD file: an array of linked objects (organizations, outcomes, indicators, reports, and related nodes), each with @id, @type, and @context. Importers can merge, validate, and query these graphs without forcing every organization to use the same metrics. For a short primer, see What is RDF?.
This site publishes the Metadata Application Profile (MAP) — documentation that states how to produce and verify conformant data, following the Dublin Core application profile pattern. Non-technical introductions also appear on commonapproach.org.
Who this site is for: software developers aligning products, funders and portfolio managers importing capsules, and social purpose organizations (SPOs) whose tools export CIDS data.
Start here
Section titled “Start here”| If you need… | Go to… |
|---|---|
| What CIDS covers and who must read what | Introduction and scope |
| Field-level developer guide (entities and links) | CIDS for developers |
| Canonical ontology, SHACL, and context URLs | Normative references |
| Whether JSON-LD validates against a tier | Alignment and conformance |
| Published taxonomies and how to reference them | Code lists |
| Copy-pastable capsule examples | Examples |
This site vs. other properties
Section titled “This site vs. other properties”| Property | Role |
|---|---|
| This site (developer documentation) | MAP: profile rules, conformance, examples, links to Graph Cast |
| ontology.commonapproach.org | Stable URIs for ontology terms, SHACL files, contexts (content negotiation) |
| codelist.commonapproach.org | Dereferenceable code list concepts |
| github.com/commonapproach/CIDS | Public working copies, FAQ, validation tooling source |
| www.commonapproach.org | Non-technical overview, links to data utilities, alignment checklist download |
Standard vs. tools
Section titled “Standard vs. tools”The MAP describes what conformant data looks like. Separate products help you build, validate, store, or convert that data. None of the utilities below are themselves normative for interchange — only the published ontology, SHACL shapes, contexts, and code lists are.
| Capability | Normative in MAP? | Where to go |
|---|---|---|
| Ontology definitions, tiers, companion modules | Yes | Normative references |
| SHACL validation of JSON-LD capsules | Yes (rules); tools are optional | Alignment and conformance |
| Hosted graph storage, API, portfolio queries | No | Graph Cast |
| Excel / Airtable templates and add-ins | No | Aligned tools |
| GitHub source, Discussions, issue tracker | No (collaboration) | github.com/commonapproach/CIDS |
| Long-form class documentation (HTML) | Reference | ontology.commonapproach.org |
Choose a path
Section titled “Choose a path”DIY alignment — Map your schema with the Alignment Checklist, export JSON-LD, and validate locally against published SHACL. See Alignment and conformance.
Utility-assisted alignment — Use aligned spreadsheet tools or export from software that already emits capsules. Validation still uses the same SHACL files. See Aligned Data utilities
Graph Cast — Store, validate, query, and re-export capsules via a managed API without operating graph infrastructure. See How Graph Cast works.
Code lists only — Some software use code lists/controlled vocabularies/taxonomies published at codelist.commonapproach.org. See Code lists for which lists apply to which properties.
SFF companion module
Section titled “SFF companion module”Reporting to Canada’s Social Finance Fund uses the SFF companion module — an extension profile with additional classes and properties on top of Basic Tier CIDS. If you are not reporting to SFF, you can skip SFF-specific material. Normative SFF artifacts are integrated throughout this MAP (not a separate profile document in this release). Start with Normative references and Obligations by tier.
Feedback and changes
Section titled “Feedback and changes”- Errors or gaps in the MAP: open an issue or Discussion on commonapproach/CIDS.
- What changed in a release: see Versioning and governance.
- Implementation tips (non-normative): see Advisory and further reading.