The Equity Summit returns *in person* in March 2024

Save the date for the Equity Summit Save the date for the 2024 Equity Summit: Meeting the Moment. The Summit gathers housing, transportation, and community development advocates and leaders to learn from one another and identify tools to advance racial equity through smart growth. The dynamic two-day program will be held in person for the first time on March 27-28, … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity

Announcing the inaugural Community Connectors program participants!

The Community Connectors program offers technical support and funding for communities working to repair the damage of divisive infrastructure in an effort to reconnect communities. The new Community Connectors program is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and conducted in partnership with Equitable Cities, the New Urban Mobility Alliance, and America Walks. Smart Growth … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity Technical assistance Transportation

Deadline Extended | RFP: Equity Summit Fundraising & Sponsorship Consultant

Deadline Extended: Proposals are now due on Friday, August 25th. About SGA Smart Growth America (SGA) is a national non-profit organization which is dedicated to advancing equitable, sustainable land use, development and transportation. The organization empowers communities through technical assistance, advocacy and thought leadership to create livable places, healthy people, and shared prosperity. We work … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity

Divided by Design

Beginning in the 1950s, highways devastated communities of color and changed our cities forever. But the consequences continue, even as we begin to acknowledge our past mistakes. Why? Our new report examines the racist roots of our current transportation system, revealing that flawed thinking continues to haunt our policies and practices. Without a fundamental change … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity Transportation

Divided by Design: Our new report quantifies historic harms and explains how to set things right

Beginning in the 1950s, highways devastated communities of color and changed our cities forever. But the consequences continue, even as we begin to acknowledge our past mistakes. Why? Our new report examines the racist roots of our current transportation system, revealing that flawed thinking continues to haunt our policies and practices. Without a fundamental change … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity Transportation

Call to Action: How our interactive programming is helping to advance racial equity

Smart Growth America’s Equity Summit returned for its third year with programming that encouraged attendees to think through how they can advance racial equity in their own practices. The keynotes and panels were centered on the themes of Equitable Community Development, Reconnecting Communities, and Equitable Decarbonization. The virtual event drew participants from all over the … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity

Staff takeaways from the 2023 Equity Summit

Last month, Smart Growth America hosted our third annual Equity Summit. The three days of virtual programming held space for thought leaders and practitioners in the planning space to gather and ensure that racial equity is a key priority in any smart growth approach. Each of the three days was concentrated on a specific smart … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity Events

Equity Forum: Advancing equitable transit-oriented development

Smart Growth America teamed up with the Amazon Housing Equity Fund and several DC-region partners to host a forum on Equitable Transit-oriented Development (ETOD) on Wednesday, December 7. Decision-makers in the public, private, philanthropic, and nonprofit sectors gathered to share replicable policies and funding strategies to advance ETOD in our region and across the country. … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity

Equity Forum Recap: Protecting and preserving culture during change

Our Equity Forum: Upending Cultural Displacement featured key thought leaders and practitioners who discussed the complex relationship between smart growth and cultural displacement, as well as shared innovative strategies for preserving and protecting neighborhood culture during change. Communities across the country are experiencing significant changes driven by reinvestment, disinvestment, rising housing costs, and the changing … Continued

Advancing Racial Equity Events