Community-Centered Approaches to Expanding Birmingham’s Broadband Infrastructure
In Alabama’s Black Belt, the digital divide has compounded issues related to racial discrimination, high poverty, and limited access to healthcare services. Nine counties in the Black Belt have less than 30% access to broadband, and even in Black Belt cities with established infrastructure, like Birmingham, many residents face cost... Read more
Developing a Regional Continuum of Care For Those Experiencing Homelessness
Seattle and King County rank in the top three areas in the country in homelessness on a per-capita basis, with more than 22,000 households and nearly 4,500 public school students experiencing homelessness in 2018 alone. And, unfortunately, homelessness has only worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has also introduced... Read more
Implementing Critical Initiatives to Mitigate Displacement of Atlanta’s Black and Low-Income Communities
Home to more than 6 million people, the Atlanta region is the ninth largest metro region in the nation and it is still rapidly growing. In part because of this unprecedented population boom, Atlanta currently ranks fifth among U.S. cities experiencing gentrification, with more than 46% of its census tracts... Read more
Scaling Diversion Programs to Reduce Incarceration and Improve Resident Health
Every year in the U.S., two million people with mental illness are booked into jails, leading to a cycle of incarceration for these individuals. One in three persons in the Orleans Justice Center Jail are treated for addiction or mental illness, and these individuals remain in the jail more than... Read more
Expanding Pathways into High-Quality Jobs by Aligning Workforce Investments
In the Bay Area, COVID-19 has dealt a harsher economic blow to the region than initially estimated. Nearly 5,000 jobs were lost in January 2021 alone. In the City of Oakland, the unemployment rate has spiked to 9.6%, after having been at its lowest rate in decades before the pandemic... Read more
Building a Sustainable Center to Support the Reimagining of Travis County’s Criminal Justice System
Across the U.S., police departments have become the front line of mental health treatment, and jails and prisons are the primary caretakers. The Travis County Jail is one of the largest mental health providers in the county, with around 34% of the jail’s roughly 1,434 inmates having a mental health... Read more
Increasing Access to Employment Opportunities for Every Milwaukeean
In Milwaukee, more than 17 percent of Black residents are unemployed, compared to more than 4 percent of white residents. A key to closing this widening economic gap is giving individuals more workforce development opportunities and access to job prospects. Employ Milwaukee, the local workforce development board serving Milwaukee County,... Read more
Bolstering Homeownership to Build Neighborhood Resilience
Like many U.S. cities, Milwaukee is dealing with an affordable housing crisis, with many residents often spending 50 to 80 percent of their income on rent or mortgage payments and homeownership rates dropping by nearly 14% over the last decade. Black residents in Milwaukee are especially strained, with 40% of... Read more
Increasing College Affordability to Ensure More Equitable Opportunities
Students in Birmingham often face a tough path to college and career. While roughly 80 percent of students graduate annually from Birmingham City Schools (BCS), many are experiencing poverty, and only 50 percent advance to post-secondary institutions. In response, the mayor has pledged that any BCS student who graduates will... Read more
Working to Reduce Racial Health Inequities
Birmingham recognizes that social determinants of health — including the built environment of neighborhoods, such as environmental hazards, access to green space, walkability, and more — are major factors in health inequities across the city. To address this, the Department of Planning, Engineering, and Permits developed a Health Community Assessment... Read more