This moment, like after every election cycle, is one of both challenges and opportunities. No matter what lies ahead, we’ll be there to meet the moment, embody our priorities, and live up to our values. More than that, SGA stands ready to do what we have done for more than 20 years: support communities, primarily … Continued
Transportation for America’s latest report highlights the need for fiscal responsibility to meet the country’s transportation goals.
As climate change brings more frequent flooding and storms to large swaths of the U.S., under-resourced communities tend to bear the brunt of their effects. This inequity is, in large part, due to a long history of discriminatory land use policies and practices that segregated and disinvested in Black and Brown communities, leaving them oftentimes … Continued
Co-authored by Joseph Mendonca Millions of people across the U.S. now experience extreme heat every year—facing threats to their health, well-being, and financial security. As climate change is only making extreme heat even worse, inaction cannot be an option and communities must work together to mitigate its effects. Through strategic land use and by using … Continued
Co-authored by Joseph Mendonca Together with the Partnership for Southern Equity (PSE), Smart Growth America has been raising awareness about the compounding effects of climate change, including the interactions between extreme heat, the built environment, pre-existing health conditions, and social inequalities in Atlanta, Georgia. In southwest Atlanta, PSE and SGA interviewed residents, activists, and climate … Continued
Elkins, West Virginia has been working to revitalize their downtown, a challenge in any circumstance, but especially in a rural Appalachian town. The workshop with Smart Growth America shared expertise and provided site-specific advice to aid local officials and community members in placemaking. The SGA team visited Elkins for two days where they participated … Continued
Smart Growth America has partnered with Partnership for Southern Equity (PSE) on a collaborative project—part of the Kresge Foundation’s Climate Change, Health, and Equity (CCHE) initiative—to advance energy equity and economic inclusion in six southwest Atlanta zip codes by providing both quantitative and policy analysis focused on the emerging clean jobs sector and other climate … Continued
While the intent of the COVID-19 emergency-response projects across the country was to retrofit our built and living environments to serve the changing needs and “new normals” generated by the pandemic, people’s experiences navigating their community varied widely. This is the second post in our series profiling findings from our recently released field scan, Shared … Continued
Climate change presents an urgent, existential threat to our communities, and those who are most vulnerable in our society today are disproportionately affected. Smart growth is one of our best strategies for reducing emissions and enhancing preparedness for future climate impacts.
The President’s infrastructure plan proposes major investments in affordable housing, smart growth, and affordable transportation that better connects us—with an overall goal of addressing climate change and eliminating racial and economic disparities. But how we target the funding matters as much as how much we spend.