The National Trust’s Preservation Green Lab recently published a pioneering report, Older, Smaller, Better: Measuring how the character of buildings and blocks influences urban vitality. This 109-page report uses the vast amount of electronic data available to researchers today—also called “big data”—to quantify how older, smaller buildings contribute to local economies and livable communities. For several decades now, preservationists have measured the economic and community benefits of historic rehabilitation projects. This is the first time, however, that such a full range of electronic data has been used on a citywide scale to document the contributions of older, smaller buildings and blocks. This report not only demonstrates that these buildings add to the economic, social, and cultural vitality of neighborhoods, but it also introduces a new methodology for using electronic data to measure the impact of older, smaller buildings. This Forum Focus is designed to help preservation professionals and advocates use the data contained within the report to advance their own efforts to save historic places. In it, you will find: