Regional Equity
When we take a broad view of many U.S. metropolitan regions, we often find a “tale of two cities.” Some parts of the region are affluent and largely White, with high-performing schools, new grocery stores with fresh produce, growing employment opportunities, high-quality child care, state-of-the-art health care facilities, and opportunities for social networking critical to civic engagement and job advancement. The other is largely poor, plagued by high-crime environments, and confined to racially segregated areas of concentrated poverty.
Equitable regionalism called for proactive policymaking that gives all people access to neighborhood resources, connections to opportunity-rich areas throughout the region, and a voice in the future of their communities. Equitable regionalism affirms the need for every community to have a voice in the resource development and future of the region. It builds and sustains region-wide, collaborative institutions with inclusive representation and a common goal: improving the health of the whole and expanding opportunity for all people and communities across the region.
Equitable regionalism must create access to opportunity, leadership and responsibility, with a particular focus on low-income communities of color. There are multiple strategies for connecting these communities to opportunity, including a focus on people, places, and the linkages among them. Investing in people, neighborhoods and communities promises returns not just to a select few individuals or neighborhoods, but to the entire region. Every region’s most important resource is its people—all of its people—and their energy, creativity, and hope for a better future. A cooperative commitment to equitable development—one that acknowledges and works within the context of the cultural, racial, and historical dynamics that characterize any region—can put the region on a positive trajectory of growth, vitality and sustainability for all communities.
