The Persistent Problem

of Inequality

Leveraging Housing Policy to Narrow Inequality

Micere Keels • University of Chicago

Urban Land Institute• Housing Opportunity 2014 Conference

May 14-16, 2014 Denver, Colorado

Links between inequality & health

• Widening inequality makes the overall society sicker

• A country’s overall economic success does predict people’s well-being, but among industrialized nations, the healthiest and happiest countries are not the richest. Rather, they are countries where wealth is shared widely and more equally.

http://inequality.org/inequality-health/

Infant Mortality is Higher in More Unequal Countries

http://inequality.org/inequality-health/

Life Expectancy is Lower in More Unequal Countries

Housing & Housing Policy

Housing & Housing Policy

Cognitive Functioning &

Health

Cognitive Functioning &

Health

Educational & Occupational

Outcomes

Educational & Occupational

Outcomes

Economically Integrated

Schools

Economically Integrated

Schools

Reducing Intergenerational Poverty

Economically Integrated Neighborhoods

Economically Integrated Neighborhoods

Economically integrated neighborhoods and schools promotes sharing of high quality public resources narrowing inequality in the next generation

Finding Common Ground report

A Housing Mobility Experiment

• Moving to Opportunity

• Positively affected health

• Little effect on income and education

A Natural Experiment: Back To The City Movement

However,

32% child poverty 70% Free/Reduced Lunch

in the city in the public schools

Economically Integrated Urban Communities

Economic Mobility For Low Income Families• Leveraging the return to cities movement to reduce

inequality• Share physical space but not social resources– E.g., in most large cities housing policy is no longer

school policy– School choice allows middle-income families to

choose the urban neighborhood they want and opt out of the low performing neighborhood school

Without purposeful action urban renewal will not lead to economically integrated social institutions and reductions in intergenerational poverty

Purpose Built Communities

• Local community led holistic change

Urban Strategies

• Aligning physical revitalization with human capital revitalization

StriveTogether• Using data to drive collective decision making and

action