Events

Description: Although not often perceived as such, housing and housing stability is a basic human right, concomitant with other basic human rights such access to clean water, air and the right to move across state borders. Equitability and stability in housing act as a threshold to a full participation in our society and to physical and mental health and well-being of citizens and denizens alike. A data science-based social science policy analysis to evaluate housing instability and housing inequity is a robust and scalable opportunity to promote the responsible use of science in public policy. The workshop will focus on presenting our pilot network model as an example for how multidisciplinary sources can be used for effective policy evaluation and development and will allocate its time roughly evenly among 1) presentation of our pilot model, 2) working with the participants on adapting and tweaking the model, and 3) discussion of the model and the importance of a communication and advocacy plan.

The proposed workshop will involve an introduction to how we constructed our pilot model, and a working session with participants to introduce them to the ways in which they can adapt the model to different communities. It is a tool we are building to provoke “what if?” reactions among policymakers and denizens of Seattle interested in increasing housing equity. As such, it is a project model that can be applied to a wide range of equity questions. We will provide workshop participants with online access to the model, allowing them to start manipulating the qualitative and quantitative inputs to explore hypothetical scenarios (to cite potential examples: what happens when one adds rent control, a universal basic income, tax incentives for landlords or homeowners?).

The workshop will finish with a discussion about the potential applicability of our network model to other communities and other human rights problems, as well as soliciting ideas from the participants about how to improve the model. We will also discuss the importance of expansive, well-planned, and detailed communications plans. How can workshop participants structure their research activities and frame conclusions in an effective way for non-academic audiences? How do we best advocate for evidence-based, rigorously tested policies among those who have the power to effect such changes? In short, how do scientists successfully sell the necessity of a scientific approach to policy makers?

Presenters: The workshop will be facilitated by the Center for Equitable Policy's Dr. Valerie F. Strickland Hunt (Political Science/Public Policy), who will also lead the discussion on how to transform a research project into effective policy advocacy. It will also feature Dr. Richard Sharp (Applied Mathematics, Data Science) speaking about the mathematical model and network methods, Mr. Sean White speaking about drivers of displacement in Seattle and housing programs in the region, and Dr. Patrick W. Zimmerman (History, Historical Anthropology) handling discussions of sources and the construction of the model.

Date & Time: 2:30pm EDT, Fri October 23^nd

Location: Virtual

We'd like to send a big thank you to everyone who attended the live workshop! For those of you who couldn't, we anticipate a recorded version being made available soon, and we encourage everyone to reach out to us with questions, queries, or ideas about how to model housing equity or how to use such tools to advocate for equitable policy.