The Applied Population Laboratory (APL) is a group of research and outreach professionals located within the Department of Community and Environmental Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The APL provides information solutions through a unique set of skills that unites applied demography; spatial information and analysis; community development and planning; and information applications. Over the last several decades, the mission of the APL has been to carry forward a program of applied demographic research and outreach to translate social and economic data into useful information for Wisconsin’s citizens, policy makers, public agencies, private organizations and other state residents seeking to understand the demographic, social and economic changes taking place around them. We collaborate with a variety of clients and, over the years, we have worked with local governments, state agencies, UW Cooperative Extension colleagues, non-profits and community-based organizations, and university faculty and researchers. In addition to consulting and direct client service, we train undergraduate and graduate students, conduct independent research on current demographic and geographic topics, provide online access to data through our WisStat and GetFacts applications, and serve as a State Data Center in Wisconsin.

Founded in 1965, the Applied Population Laboratory is widely respected throughout the United States for its strong research contributions in applied demography and small area population estimation and projections.