2015 Urban Affairs Association Conference

A recent Urban Institute book, Strengthening Communities with Neighborhood Data, relates the progress since the mid-1990s in the development and use of community indicators to make better local decisions and motivate broader social change. The book discusses the advances underlying the trend: in institutions, data and technology, community applications, and research methods. The authors draw in part on the lessons from the National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership, a network of local organizations in three dozen cities that collect, organize, and use neighborhood data to tackle issues in their communities. The panelists will share their perspectives on the future of the community information field and what we should be collectively working on to improve practice and research to understand and improve our neighborhoods. Tom Kingsley and Kathy Pettit, two authors of the book, will provide an overview of the community information field and national perspective on local use of neighborhood data. The conversation will be grounded in case studies from three very different cities. Lisa Nelson will talk about how Cuyahoga County’s NEO CANDO system, a remarkable parcel-level data system maintained by Case Western University, moved from a useful tool for a few government agencies and community development practitioners to an essential one for widespread users. Meg Merrick will tell the story of Portland State University’s local indicators work, starting with the use of the Regional Equity Atlas by local advocates to influence regional greenspace policy and change funding mechanisms to enable targeting to park-deficient areas in low income and minority communities. She’ll also draw on comparisons with their later indicators work on Greater Portland Pulse. Sabina Deitrick will discuss her experiences at the University Center for Social and Urban Research in providing data for neighborhoods up to the region and in serving as a catalyst and hub for open data.