GIS IN SOCIAL SCIENCES

SAMIR GAMBHIR

Senior Research Associate

Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity

Geography 686 Spring 2009Class presentation

May 18, 2009

About Kirwan Institute Mission & Vision

The central mission of the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity is to contribute meaningfully to the field of research and scholarship on race, ethnicity and social justice, to assist in reframing the way that we talk about, think about and act on race and ethnicity, and to deepen the understanding of the causes and consequences of and solutions to racial and ethnic hierarchy and disparity so that we can envision and realize a society that is fair and just for all people, where opportunity is not limited by race, ethnicity, gender, or class, where democratic ideals inform social policy, and where all people recognize and embrace the universal responsibility that each person has for the welfare of every other person. From day to day we are concerned about the internal workings of the Institute, but the real measure of our success must be the impact of our work in bringing about this vision of a true democratic society. For this reason, all of our research and scholarship is intended to have an implicit or explicit impact on policies in the real world. By creating a research-based structural lens to look at racism, we are shifting not only the way that racism is conceptualized, but also the way we conceive of strategies to counteract its impact. In shifting the way we talk about, think about and act on race, we hope to give new meaning to the proposition that human destinies are intertwined.

Questions

What do these maps show? What are these being used for? Do these maps tell a story? Are these effective in conveying what they

are intended for?www.healthcarethatworks.org

Discussion Why use maps?

Overlay multiple pieces of information Tell a story Good entry point to unite diverse coalitions or stakeholders

Why is visual information important? A picture is worth a thousand words Provide spatial reference “People are able to look at the information based on where they live or

areas they are familiar with and obtain a better understating”

Why are maps effective? “people feel like they understand maps. Nobody will give you feedback

on regression analysis”Mapping is very effective at identifying strategic intervention pointsShared sense of value; builds mutual trust

Maps: Powerful Visual Tools

Maps are incredibly efficient compacting volumes of

data ability to convey

information in seconds tell a story or solve a

problem Research has shown that

people can solve problems faster with map based information, than by looking at charts, tables or graphs

Space and Social Equity Why are maps particularly effective in dealing with

issues of equity?Regional, racial and social inequity often manifest as spatial

inequityMaps are naturally the best tools to display this spatial

phenomenaMaps give us the opportunity to look at our entire

regions or states○ Informing people about an issue at a scale they may not usually

think of ○ linking communities sharing similar problems

Neighborhood based data Using neighborhood based data to assess

neighborhood opportunities and challenges is not unprecedented

is used in various sectors Examples

Business: Site selection analysis by firms such as ClaritasCommunity Development: Criteria used to identify areas

for targeted investment or areas targeted for specific community development initiatives

Housing: Models that try to connect affordable housing to areas of job growth “work force housing initiatives”

Using Maps for Advocacy

In our work we see mapping as serving these primary advocacy goalsAnalysis

○ Existing conditions, spatial trends, scenarios, optimization etc.

Storytelling○ A narrative

Combination

Analytical Examples

Are minority businesses in areas of economic opportunity? (Cleveland)

Are hospital investments benefiting communities of color? (Columbus)

How should EITC advocacy be tailored? (Columbus)

Are job growth areas connected to transit? (Baltimore)

MBE and Projected Job Change 2000-2030

Hospital Investments and African American Neighborhoods:Columbus

Where Should EITC Advocacy be Targeted?

Spatial Mismatch:Job Growth &

PublicTransit in Baltimore

Percent Change in Jobs

30 - 66.6

15 - 30

5 - 15

0 - 5

Job Loss

Recent Job Growth 98-02 and Public Transitin the Baltimore Region

The following map illustrates the mismatch between job growth and

transit in Baltimore

Narratives Examples Subsidized housing policy is reinforcing

segregation (Baltimore) Foreclosures in African American

neighborhoods are due to subprime lending patterns (Cleveland)

Vacant property problems are spreading, vacant property challenges are not just an inner city problem (Detroit)

What if Montclair, NJ schools returned to neighborhood school system?

Conditions in Baltimore

Subsidized housing opportunities in Baltimore are generally clustered in the region’s predominately African American neighborhoods

Subprime Lending, Race and Foreclosure(Note: Not one of our maps)

Subprime Lending, Race and Foreclosure(Note: Not one of our maps)

Maps: Produced and adapted from Charles Bromley, SAGES Presidential Fellow, Case Western University

Looking at Issues Across Time and Space: The Growing Vacant Land Problem in Detroit

8 0 8 16 Miles

N

EW

S

Growth of Vacant Housing in Detroit 1970-2000(% Vacant Housing in 1970 and 2000)

% Vacant 1970

% Vacant 2000

% of Homes Vacant0 - 33 - 1010 - 1515 - 2020 - 57.6

CountiesHighwaysCity of Detroit

Prepared by: Kirwan InstituteSource Data: U.S. Census Bureau

Legend:

Montclair School District, NJ

Opportunity Mapping:Combining Analysis with a Strong Narrative

Opportunity mapping is a research tool used to understand the dynamics of “opportunity” within metropolitan areas

The purpose of opportunity mapping is to illustrate where opportunity rich communities exist (and assess who has access to these communities) Also, to understand what needs to be remedied in

opportunity poor communities

The “Community of Opportunity” approach

Where you live is more important than what you live in… Housing -- in particular its location -- is the primary mechanism

for accessing opportunity in our society Housing location determines

○ the quality of schools children attend, ○ the quality of public services they receive, ○ access to employment and transportation, ○ exposure to health risks, ○ access to health care, etc.

For those living in high poverty neighborhoods, these factors can significantly inhibit life outcomes

Framework The “Communities of Opportunity” framework

is a model of fair housing and community development

The model is based on the premises that Everyone should have fair access to the critical

opportunity structures needed to succeed in lifeAffirmatively connecting people to opportunity

creates positive, transformative change in communities

The web of opportunity Opportunities in our society are geographically

distributed (and often clustered) throughout metropolitan areasThis creates “winner” and “loser” communities or

“high” and “low” opportunity communities Your location within this “web of opportunity”

plays a decisive role in your life potential and outcomesIndividual characteristics still matter……but so does access to opportunity, such as good

schools, health care, child care, and job networks

Subsidized housing opportunities in Baltimore are generally clustered in the region’s lowest opportunity neighborhoods

Baltimore Opportunity and Subsidized Housing

Detroit Opportunity and Race

African American men are isolated from neighborhoods of

opportunity in Detroit

Low opportunity neighborhoods have higher number of linguistically isolated households

Austin Opportunity and Linguistic Isolation

Methodology

Identifying and selecting indicators of opportunity

Identifying sources of data Compiling list of indicators (data matrix) Calculating Z scores Averaging these scores

Methodology:

Sources of Data Federal Organizations

Census Bureau County Business Patterns (ZIP Code Data) Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

State and Local Governmental Organizations Regional planning agencies Education boards/school districts Transportation agencies County Auditor’s Office

Other agencies (non-Profit and Private) Schoolmatters.org DataPlace.org ESRI Business Analyst Claritas

Methodology:Indicator Categories Education

Student/Teacher ratio? Test scores? Student mobility?

Economic/Employment Indicators Unemployment rate? Proximity to employment? Job creation?

Neighborhood Quality Median home values? Crime rate? Housing vacancy rate?

Mobility/Transportation Indicators Mean commute time? Access to public transit?

Health & Environmental Indicators Access to health care? Exposure to toxic waste? Proximity to parks

or open space?

Methodology:

Calculating Z Scores

Z Score – a statistical measure that quantifies the distance (measured in standard deviations) between data points and the meanZ Score = (Data point – Mean)/ Standard Deviation

Allows data for a geography (e.g. census tract) to be measured based on their relative distance from the average for the entire region

Raw z score performance Mean value is always “zero” – z score indicates distance from the

mean Positive z score is always above the region’s mean, Negative z score

is always below the region’s mean Indicators with negative effect on opportunity should have all the z

scores adjusted to reflect this phenomena

Austin MSA, TX

New Orleans MSA, LA

Baltimore MSA, MD

Massachusetts Opportunity Mapping, Boston area

Cleveland Area, OH

Follow-up

Need more research on methodology The model needs to be made more

robust Critical analysis of all indicators e.g. job

mismatch, park access issues

Ongoing projects

Connecticut Fair Housing and Opportunity Children well-being and policy guidance in

Massachusetts Florida Opportunity Mapping and Economic

stimulus money tracking Montclair, NJ school integration King County, Seattle Opportunity Mapping

and Housing

Future projects

Online interactive maps ArcGIS ServerArcIMS

○ http://128.146.162.230/Website/Baltimore/

Open source○ http://www.gis.osu.edu/webgis-projects/opportunity/index.html

Preparing a national model for Opportunity Mapping

Questions or Comments? Please visit us online at: www.kirwaninstitute.org