Dear Atlas users,

We are excited to announce that the National Equity Atlas team is expanding! While the movement for racial equity continues to gain momentum across the nation, it is critical to center people and communities of color in our economy’s recovery and in our systems and policy change efforts. This additional staffing will allow us to take on more data requests from community leaders and organizers, conduct more original analyses, build more responsive data tools, and dedicate more time to supporting equity advocates and campaigns.

The National Equity Atlas Team Is Growing

The Atlas team is actively recruiting for three new positions: a director to lead the team, a senior associate to conduct research and analysis, and a senior communications associate to lead all of our media & dissemination activities. These are dream jobs for people who love data, use mixed-methods approaches, and want to produce innovative research and partner with grassroots organizations advancing racial and economic equity. We have a preference for Bay Area-based candidates, but encourage applicants from anywhere in the US who are passionate about racial equity and have experience working in and with communities of color. Learn more about the positions here and please share with your networks!

Atlas Featured in “How to Build an Inclusive Economy”

PolicyLink CEO Michael McAfee was included in Freethink’s recent video series on how to build an inclusive economy and lifted up the role of the Atlas in advancing the equity movement by highlighting key data insights that validate the experiences of communities of color and providing fuel to advance equity campaigns. “The National Equity Atlas,” he explained, “will give you a sense of how much a region, a city, a county, a state, would benefit by closing gaps in racial disparities.” Watch the video.

Racial Equity in Entrepreneurship Is Crucial for an Inclusive Recovery

At the recent Institute of Governmental Studies Research Symposium, Sarah Treuhaft joined a keynote panel to share key Atlas data and insights on the state of racial equity in entrepreneurship, noting that in the 10 most populous US cities African Americans remain underrepresented in business ownership. Removing barriers that prevent people of color from starting and growing successful businesses is a crucial inclusive growth strategy as entrepreneurship is an important pathway for building wealth and addressing the racial wealth gap and also creating jobs for workers of color.

In the News

This month, our Rent Debt Dashboard was covered by the Los Angeles Times, Cal Matters, Maryland Matters, CBS8, Mendocino Voice, and the Sahan Journal. Our study of California rideshare driver healthcare access under Prop 22 was covered by LawyersAndSettlements. You can find a complete list of news coverage here.

- The National Equity Atlas team at PolicyLink and the USC Equity Research Institute (ERI)