#f68a33

National Equity Atlas Update

Dear Atlas Users,

The brutal murder of George Floyd by the Minneapolis police was a stark reminder of the racism that permeates our institutions, threatens Black life, and diminishes us as a nation. We cannot achieve inclusive prosperity without addressing police brutality, and the Atlas team stands in solidarity with those protesting this unjust system and calling for transformative change. We are working hard to finalize the new Atlas system upgrade to share with you later this month, and have been partnering with other data providers to assess the unequal economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic by race, gender, nativity, and occupation. Here are a few highlights:

New Analysis: Disaggregated Data on Economic Impacts of COVID-19 for US and 10 Metros

Today, in partnership with Burning Glass Technologies and JPMorgan Chase, we released the most comprehensive analysis to date of the labor market effects of the coronavirus pandemic, aiming to inform equity-focused relief and recovery strategies. In addition to the US, we analyzed 10 metro regions: Boston, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, San Francisco, and Seattle. Our analysis reveals that people of color and immigrants are concentrated in occupations that have experienced the steepest declines in job opportunities and will likely be among the last to recover, putting Black, Latinx, and Native American workers at heightened risk of long-term unemployment. People of color are also overrepresented in low-wage essential jobs, and Native Americans and immigrants are most concentrated in essential jobs where opportunities are declining. Among the 10 regions, the economic impacts of the virus are uneven: metros with large tourism sectors (like Nashville and Miami) have been hit particularly hard, while diversified regional economies with strong tech sectors (like Seattle and SF) have fared somewhat better. Read the full analysis here.

New Profile of Bay Area Essential Workers

In May, the Bay Area Equity Atlas released three new analyses focused on frontline workers in the region, including two deep dives into workforce demographics in Sonoma and Santa Clara counties. We found that frontline workers in these counties and the Bay overall are disproportionately Latinx, Black, and women of color, which could help explain why these populations are more likely to contract COVID-19. Latinx workers represent 22 percent of workers in all industries but 31 percent of frontline workers while Black workers, who account for just 5 percent of all workers in the region, are concentrated in specific frontline industries including public transit (23 percent) and postal services (11 percent). These workers are more likely to live in poverty, lack health insurance, and have no internet access at home. Read our analyses here. Check out media coverage of this research from KQEDSF Gate, and La Opinion.

National Equity Atlas In the News

  • Ron Brownstein at The Atlantic analyzed National Equity Atlas data and corresponded with Atlas team members to inform his new article about how racial inequity is “the crack in the foundation of cities’ new prosperity.” Looking at data on median wages for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Miami, Seattle, Denver, Philadelphia, and Minneapolis, he found that racial wage gaps have grown in all of those cities between 1980 and 2015.
     
  • E&E News published an article describing the criticism and subsequent revision of CDC guidelines encouraging workers to commute alone in private vehicles to slow the spread of the coronavirus, lifting up Atlas data showing that nearly 20 percent of Black households and 12 percent of Latinx households do not have access to a car, compared to 6.5 percent of White households. "So yes, there is a race and class bias in saying, 'You can just drive to work,'" said Basav Sen, climate justice project director at the Institute for Policy Studies.

Thank you for your interest in our work.

-- The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE)

National Equity Atlas Update

New Analysis Finds People of Color and Immigrants are Disproportionately Harmed by Labor-Market Impacts of COVID-19

Dear Atlas Users,

The brutal murder of George Floyd by the Minneapolis police was a stark reminder of the racism that permeates our institutions, threatens Black life, and diminishes us as a nation. We cannot achieve inclusive prosperity without addressing police brutality, and the Atlas team stands in solidarity with those protesting this unjust system and calling for transformative change. We are working hard to finalize the new Atlas system upgrade to share with you later this month, and have been partnering with other data providers to assess the unequal economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic by race, gender, nativity, and occupation. Here are a few highlights:

New Analysis: Disaggregated Data on Economic Impacts of COVID-19 for US and 10 Metros

Today, in partnership with Burning Glass Technologies and JPMorgan Chase, we released the most comprehensive analysis to date of the labor market effects of the coronavirus pandemic, aiming to inform equity-focused relief and recovery strategies. In addition to the US, we analyzed 10 metro regions: Boston, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, San Francisco, and Seattle. Our analysis reveals that people of color and immigrants are concentrated in occupations that have experienced the steepest declines in job opportunities and will likely be among the last to recover, putting Black, Latinx, and Native American workers at heightened risk of long-term unemployment. People of color are also overrepresented in low-wage essential jobs, and Native Americans and immigrants are most concentrated in essential jobs where opportunities are declining. Among the 10 regions, the economic impacts of the virus are uneven: metros with large tourism sectors (like Nashville and Miami) have been hit particularly hard, while diversified regional economies with strong tech sectors (like Seattle and SF) have fared somewhat better. Read the full analysis here.

New Profile of Bay Area Essential Workers

In May, the Bay Area Equity Atlas released three new analyses focused on frontline workers in the region, including two deep dives into workforce demographics in Sonoma and Santa Clara counties. We found that frontline workers in these counties and the Bay overall are disproportionately Latinx, Black, and women of color, which could help explain why these populations are more likely to contract COVID-19. Latinx workers represent 22 percent of workers in all industries but 31 percent of frontline workers while Black workers, who account for just 5 percent of all workers in the region, are concentrated in specific frontline industries including public transit (23 percent) and postal services (11 percent). These workers are more likely to live in poverty, lack health insurance, and have no internet access at home. Read our analyses here. Check out media coverage of this research from KQEDSF Gate, and La Opinion.

National Equity Atlas In the News

  • Ron Brownstein at The Atlantic analyzed National Equity Atlas data and corresponded with Atlas team members to inform his new article about how racial inequity is “the crack in the foundation of cities’ new prosperity.” Looking at data on median wages for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Miami, Seattle, Denver, Philadelphia, and Minneapolis, he found that racial wage gaps have grown in all of those cities between 1980 and 2015.
     
  • E&E News published an article describing the criticism and subsequent revision of CDC guidelines encouraging workers to commute alone in private vehicles to slow the spread of the coronavirus, lifting up Atlas data showing that nearly 20 percent of Black households and 12 percent of Latinx households do not have access to a car, compared to 6.5 percent of White households. "So yes, there is a race and class bias in saying, 'You can just drive to work,'" said Basav Sen, climate justice project director at the Institute for Policy Studies.
     

Thank you for your interest in our work.

-- The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE)

National Equity Atlas Update

Dear Atlas Users,

Our team has been busy behind the scenes getting our new data and interface ready for you, but also made it to DC last month to share our work at Datapalooza. And we are excited to share new research on race and political power in the Bay Area, revealing how one of the nation’s most diverse regions is making some progress, yet has a long way to go toward political inclusion.

New Analysis: Bay Area Diversity Not Reflected Among Top Elected Officials
With all eyes on the presidential primaries, it is easy to forget about what is happening at the local level — yet local electeds make crucial decisions in arenas like policing, housing, and land use that can have significant equity implications. And while the race and gender of elected officials does not alone determine whether they will advance equitable policies, representation matters. This is why the Bay Area Equity Atlas includes the diversity of electeds as a key measure of community power. Today, the Atlas released new data covering the November 2018 and 2019 elections, and a comprehensive analysis in partnership with Bay Rising. While the region has made some progress on political representation over the past two years, it is still lagging behind: people of color hold 29 percent of top elected offices despite making up 60 percent of the population. API and Latinx community members are particularly underrepresented; they make up 50 percent of the population but hold just 20 percent of elected offices. Read more here

On the Road: The Atlas at Health Datapalooza
Earlier this month, the Atlas team headed to Washington, D.C. for the 2020 Health Datapalooza, a convening of policymakers, regulatory leaders, data analysts, tech start-ups, and community members committed to using data to improve health. To an audience of roughly 50 people, alongside our colleagues from County Health Rankings and Roadmaps and the City Health Dashboard, we discussed data challenges when it comes to existing national surveys and reporting as well as what to do when the most important data does not exist. We highlighted our collection of diversity of electeds in the Bay Area Equity Atlas as one response to this challenge.

Thank you for your interest in our work.

The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE)

National Equity Atlas Update

Dear Atlas Users,

Happy Holidays from the National Equity Atlas team! We are proud of the work we did in 2019 to advance the conversation on equitable growth and equip community leaders with data to power campaigns for racial and economic equity. Here are a few highlights:
 

We launched the Bay Area Equity Atlas!
On June 5th, we released our first local data and policy tool: the Bay Area Equity Atlas. Created in partnership with the San Francisco Foundation, the Atlas includes 21 metrics across the foundation’s People, Place, and Power equity framework and covers 271 geographies in the nine-county region. We’ve been thrilled to see communities using the data to protect renters from displacementimprove outcomes for the Latinx population, and develop equity strategies in the suburbs/exurbs, as well as to read the in-depth stories written by local journalists incorporating our data.

Leveraging Data for Local Policy and Systems Change
The dozens of equity profiles we have produced with local partners over the years continue to inform decision-making, organizing, and policy campaigns. Data from the Cincinnati Equitable Growth Profile helped advocates successfully pass a wage equity policy this March, and that same month our Omaha partners received an American Planning Association award for their work using the profile data to drive equitable planning for health, housing, and transportation. In 2019, we worked with community partners in Long Beach (CA), Orange County (CA), and Pinellas County (FL) to develop equity profiles that are now informing local policy discussions.

New Data Driving the Policy Debate on Inclusive Growth
This year, we added data to the Atlas tracking racial equity in entrepreneurship and business growth. We also produced an analysis that classifies regions according to how their economies are shifting with the rise of tech-driven industries, and what strategies can foster shared prosperity, including case studies of Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Stockton. And, we produced fact sheets to inform the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty’s campaigns to protect families from predatory financial services.

Atlas in the News
Our data and reports have been covered by various local and national media outlets and articles, and journalists, as well as community leaders, have used our data in op-eds and articles. See this media coverage here.

Thank you for your interest! We are working hard to bring you updated data and a brand new interface in early 2020, and we are excited to reconnect in 2020.

The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE)

National Equity Atlas in 2019: Going Local, Informing Policy, Refreshing Data for the New Year!

Dear Atlas Users,

Happy Holidays from the National Equity Atlas team! We are proud of the work we did in 2019 to advance the conversation on equitable growth and equip community leaders with data to power campaigns for racial and economic equity. Here are a few highlights:
 

We launched the Bay Area Equity Atlas!
On June 5th, we released our first local data and policy tool: the Bay Area Equity Atlas. Created in partnership with the San Francisco Foundation, the Atlas includes 21 metrics across the foundation’s People, Place, and Power equity framework and covers 271 geographies in the nine-county region. We’ve been thrilled to see communities using the data to protect renters from displacement, improve outcomes for the Latinx population, and develop equity strategies in the suburbs/exurbs, as well as to read the in-depth stories written by local journalists incorporating our data.

Leveraging Data for Local Policy and Systems Change
The dozens of equity profiles we have produced with local partners over the years continue to inform decision-making, organizing, and policy campaigns. Data from the Cincinnati Equitable Growth Profile helped advocates successfully pass a wage equity policy this March, and that same month our Omaha partners received an American Planning Association award for their work using the profile data to drive equitable planning for health, housing, and transportation. In 2019, we worked with community partners in Long Beach (CA), Orange County (CA), and Pinellas County (FL) to develop equity profiles that are now informing local policy discussions.

New Data Driving the Policy Debate on Inclusive Growth
This year, we added data to the Atlas tracking racial equity in entrepreneurship and business growth. We also produced an analysis that classifies regions according to how their economies are shifting with the rise of tech-driven industries, and what strategies can foster shared prosperity, including case studies of Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Stockton. And, we produced fact sheets to inform the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty’s campaigns to protect families from predatory financial services.

Atlas in the News
Our data and reports have been covered by various local and national media outlets and articles, and journalists, as well as community leaders, have used our data in op-eds and articles. See this media coverage here.

Thank you for your interest! We are working hard to bring you updated data and a brand new interface in early 2020, and we are excited to reconnect in 2020.

The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE)

National Equity Atlas Updates

Dear Atlas Users,

Happy Halloween! Our team is busy updating our data, upgrading our technology backbone, and creating a new Equity and Prosperity Index to release early next year. We are happy to see our data being used in opinion pieces making the case for inclusive growth in Cleveland, Los Angeles, and Orange County.

New Report: Regional Economies in Transition

Earlier this month, with support from the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, we released Regional Economies in Transition: Analyzing Trends in Advanced Industries, Manufacturing, and the Service Sector to Inform Inclusive Growth Strategies, a report that classifies the 150 largest U.S. regions according to three major labor market trends to examine how these evolving conditions are shaping economic opportunity at the regional level. To provide an in-depth illustration of how these interrelated dynamics manifest at the local level, the report is accompanied by case studies of Charlotte, Philadelphia, and Stockton.

What We Heard from You

Thanks to all of you who shared your feedback and ideas on the future of the Atlas last month when we sent out our user survey! Most of you said that you appreciate the site and want to see more of what is available: New indicators and analyses, additional geographies, and more examples of how people are using the data to drive policy change. Some of you mentioned more updated data, which we are working on, and more of a summary of the data, which we hope the forthcoming index will provide. Others asked for more networking and learning opportunities. We will be using this information to develop our fundraising strategy going forward. Missed the opportunity to share feedback? You can still take the survey.

Atlas In the News

Our analysis revealing that Cleveland’s GDP could grow 12 percent per year with racial equity in income was mentioned twice in Crain’s Cleveland Business: first in an editorial for a more dynamic vision for the local economy; and then again in an op-ed connecting the legacy of slavery with present-day racial disparities. An article in Voice of OC in Orange County, California connects equity with the conversation around recasting Columbus Day as Indigenous People’s Day by lifting up racial disparities highlighted in our equity profile of the region. A KCET article profiling LA County’s Center for Financial Empowerment (CFE) uses our equity profile of Los Angeles to make the case for building economic security in low-income communities. Finally, Tracey Ross from PolicyLink uses the statistic that 106 million people — or one in every three U.S. residents — can be considered economically insecure in her essay in ESSENCE about Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’ “A Just Society” legislative package; she adds this and other findings from our report, 100 Million and Counting: A Portrait of Economic Insecurity in the United States, to argue for additional ambitious policies to address inequality at the state and local level.

Thank you for your interest in our work!

The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE)

National Equity Atlas Updates

In the coming weeks, our team will be updating all of our data and technology infrastructure to make the Atlas an even more powerful tool for local action. What should we focus on to make it work better for you? Please take a moment to inform the future of the Atlas by filling out this short (4 question) survey.

National Equity Atlas Update

When you sign up for our email list (below right), you will receive updates about new Atlas content, events, and examples of equity data in action. 
 
Dear Bay Area Equity Atlas Users:
 
Happy July and welcome to our first monthly update! It has been a terrific first month for the Atlas. Since our June 4th launch, more than 3,000 people have visited the site and we are beginning to hear stories about how people are using Atlas data to inform their work to advance equity. Here is a roundup of our forthcoming events and latest activities.
 
Upcoming Webinar: Using Bay Area Equity Atlas Data to Prevent Displacement and Protect Renters
Data on how the housing crisis is affecting renters is a key ingredient in winning the strong tenant protections needed to stabilize renters and halt displacement. On July 23rd, from 3:00 - 4:00 p.m. PST, join the Atlas team and tenant advocates working in Concord, Hayward, Oakland, and San José to learn about how these local leaders are using Atlas data in their organizing and policy campaigns and what renter data you can find on the Atlas. Register here.
 
New Analysis: Bay Area Diversity Not Reflected Among Top Elected Leaders
The Bay Area is one of the most diverse regions in the country, but our analysis of the unique diversity of electeds dataset in the Atlas reveals that Whites (especially men) were overrepresented among elected officials while Latinx and Asian or Pacific Islanders were underrepresented. As of May 2018, 74 percent of top elected officials were White, while 40 percent of the population is White, and only 19 percent of electeds were Latinx or API, although those two groups represent half of the population. Read more.

Data Storytelling: New Partnership with Bay City News 
Helping journalists incorporate a strong equity analysis into their reporting through the use of disaggregated data is one of the Atlas team’s goals, so we are thrilled about our new partnership with Bay City News Service and sister LocalNewsMatters.org website to produce a series of 10 stories drawing on Atlas data. Check out the first two stories: Equity Ripples: Concord Feels the Weight of Bay Area Housing Crisis and Communities of Color Shifting to Suburbs, and follow #BayAreaEquityAtlas for upcoming stories.

Spreading the Equity Data
Our team was happy to conduct a training for the Northern California Grantmakers’ Racial Equity Action Institute cohort of leaders in business, government, nonprofits, and philanthropy. We also presented to the Power of 9 Committee and the Contra Costa Budget Justice Coalition workshop in Antioch. Interested in hosting a presentation or training? Drop us a line at info@bayareaequityatlas.org.
 
Atlas In the News
The launch of the Bay Area Equity Atlas was covered by SFGate, CBS San Francisco, Napa Valley Register and SF Bay. It’s mission, background, and features were also highlighted by Philanthropy News Digest.
 
Thank you!
 
The Bay Equity Atlas team

National Equity Atlas Update

 

Dear Atlas Users,

Happy Summer! Early in June, we were thrilled to launch the Bay Area Equity Atlas as a new local and data policy tool. Join us for a webinar next month to explore its housing indicators and how the data can be used to prevent displacement and protect renters. This month, the National Equity Atlas team added new entrepreneurship indicators, which we will be exploring in a webinar on Thursday. We hope you will join us!
 
Join Us for the Launch of Equitable Entrepreneurship Indicators
Businesses owned by people of color make up a significant and growing share of companies in cities across the country, yet the racial wealth gap and lack of access to capital stifle entrepreneurs of color and communities lose out on the jobs, services, and financial security that come with business development and growth. To equip communities with data on entrepreneurship, we are adding four indicators of business growth and diversity to the Atlas based on the Census Bureau’s 2007 and 2012 Survey of Business Owners. Join our webinar on Thursday, June 27 to learn about these indicators and hear from Gary Cunningham, president-elect of Prosperity Now, and janera solomon, executive director of Kelly Strayhorn Theater in Pittsburgh, about local strategies to foster equitable entrepreneurship. Register here.
 
Advancing Racial and Economic Equity at Atlanta’s Just Opportunity Summit
Racial equity in employment, economic mobility, and wealth were key themes of the inaugural Just Opportunity Summit held June 20-21 at Morehouse College in Atlanta hosted by the Partnership for Southern Equity and the Just Opportunity Circle. Last year, we released Employment Equity: Putting Georgia on the Path to Inclusive Prosperity with Partnership for Southern Equity (PSE) and Nathaniel Smith, the organization’s founder and chief equity officer, remarked that “the Summit is grounded in the belief of equity and hard data.” Read more in our Data in Action post here.

Using Bay Area Equity Atlas Data to Prevent Displacement and Protect Renters
The housing crisis is a key equity challenge in the Bay Area, and to support communities in protecting renters from rising rents and displacement, Bay Area Equity Atlas includes indicators such as market rent, rent burden, gentrification risk, and the potential economic gains of eliminating rent burden. Join us for a webinar on July 23 to learn about these indicators and hear from community groups working on tenant protections campaigns in Concord, Hayward, Oakland, and San Jose. Register here.
 
In the News
The launch of the Bay Area Equity Atlas was covered by SFGate, CBS San Francisco, Napa Valley Register and SF Bay. It’s mission, background, and features were also highlighted by Philanthropy News Digest.
 
 
Thank you for your interest in our work!

The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE)

National Equity Atlas Update

Dear Atlas Users,

We are thrilled to announce the launch of the Bay Area Equity Atlas today! This new local data and policy tool includes several new and upgraded features we will be transferring to the National Equity Atlas later this year. Join tomorrow’s webinar to take a tour of the Atlas and see a preview of what is to come. We are also excited to share new data on entrepreneurship with you on our webinar June 27th.

Introducing the Bay Area Equity Atlas
Produced in partnership with the San Francisco Foundation, the Bay Area Equity Atlas brings the power of the National Equity Atlas down to the local level. This new community data resource provides 21 equity metrics disaggregated by race, gender, and income and tracking change over time for 272 geographies across the Bay Area region, including 220 cities and Census Designated Places. Fourteen are new indicators that are not included in the Atlas, including voting, diversity of electeds, and police use of force. Read the team’s welcome blog post about how this tool helps to democratize power, then learn about five essential features that makes the Bay Area Equity Atlas a next-generation community data tool. There’s also still time to sign up for tomorrow’s webinar.

Join Us for the Launch of Entrepreneurship Indicators
Businesses owned by people of color make up a significant and growing share of companies in cities across the country, yet the racial wealth gap and lack of access to capital stifle entrepreneurs of color and communities lose out on the jobs, services, and financial security that come with business development and growth. To equip communities with data on entrepreneurship, we are adding four indicators of business growth and diversity to the Atlas based on the Census Bureau’s 2007 and 2012 Survey of Business Owners. Join us on this webinar to learn about these indicators and hear from Gary Cunningham, president-elect of Prosperity Now, about strategies that support work to foster equitable entrepreneurship.

In the News
In early May, Tampa Bay Newspapers highlighted the findings from An Equity Profile of Pinellas County. Later in the month, Streetsblog USA covered a Salud America! report that used Atlas data to detail transportation equity challenges in Latinx communities. This nola.com article also focuses on transportation equity, but uses Atlas data about housing burden to make the case for housing and infrastructure investments to ease the burden.

On the Road
The Atlas team had a busy month presenting our data and insights at the Rise Together Opportunity Summit in San Jose; the GEO Conference in Seattle; the Madison Region Economic Development & Diversity Summit in Madison, Wisconsin; and the National Academies’ Committee Informing the Development of Healthy People 2030.


Thank you for your interest in our work.

The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE)

Pages