Ong on Consequences of Census Undercount

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Paul Ong, director of the Center for Neighborhood Knowledge at UCLA Luskin, spoke to the Associated Press about widespread concerns about gaps in the 2020 U.S. Census data. The U.S. Census is one of the most important surveys about how Americans live, typically receiving information from 3.5 million households about family life, education, income and employment, but the pandemic resulted in fewer responses being recorded. According to Ong, there are two potential problems with the undercount. “The first is not having comparable data to track longitudinal changes over time,” he said. “The second is a far bigger issue — that is, not having the data to examine the pandemic effects.” Many researchers are concerned that there will be a significant gap in data for a momentous year including the pandemic, natural disasters and social justice protests. “For us, it is important to examine which populations and neighborhoods were most hurt,” Ong said.

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Manville Explains Equity of Congestion Pricing

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Associate Professor of Urban Planning Michael Manville spoke to the Washington Post to help debunk myths about highways and traffic. While some cities have widened their highways in an attempt to decrease traffic, “the iron law of congestion” explains the phenomenon in which widening highways results in a proportional increase in cars on the road. Some economists and urban planning experts, including Manville, have proposed congestion pricing as a solution to traffic congestion by making drivers pay for the space they take up on the highway. Some opponents of congestion pricing have argued that the policy would hurt the poor, but Manville responded, “Free roads are not a good way to help poor people.” Manville explained that affluent people drive more regardless of whether or not congestion pricing exists, so the best way to help low-income residents is actually by improving infrastructure and public transit, which can be funded through congestion pricing revenue.

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A Focus on Front-Line Communities in the Fight for Climate Justice

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An ABC7 News report on President Joe Biden’s pledge to prioritize environmental justice in disadvantaged communities highlighted an action plan put forward by the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation. Known as the Justice40 Initiative, Biden’s executive action ordered that 40% of the federal government’s investments in climate and clean infrastructure be used to benefit people in historically marginalized communities. The UCLA report provides guidance on steps needed to design and implement the initiative to be effective and equitable. “Southern Californians breathe some of the dirtiest air in the country. These are the types of communities that should be at the front lines of receiving the benefits of investments that are meant to reduce air pollution and fight the effects of climate change,” said Colleen Callahan, deputy director of the Center for Innovation and co-author of the report. Other media outlets covering the Justice40 report include La Opinión, Black Voice News and Asian Journal.

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Umemoto on Acknowledging Painful History

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Urban Planning Professor Karen Umemoto spoke to NBC News about the importance of facilitating discussions about racial tensions to incorporate the histories of communities that have long been made invisible. In 1871, about 20 Chinese Americans were murdered in a race riot in Los Angeles, now regarded by many as a forgotten history. Umemoto said that we can be critical of the things that have taken place in history without necessarily blaming the ancestors of those who may have perpetrated injustices. “Remembering both the accomplishments and achievements of different groups in society is as important as remembering the tragedies,” said Umemoto, director of UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center. In ethnic studies, Umemoto aims to “teach about the full lives of people of color in this country and Indigenous peoples in this country so that we could develop that historical empathy for one another.”

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Shah on COVID-19 Vaccination Incentives That Backfire

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Media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, Marketplace and San Francisco Chronicle reported on research co-authored by Public Policy Professor Manisha Shah that found that incentive programs — including the offer of money — have little impact on COVID-19 vaccination rates. The researchers randomly offered study participants, all members of the Medicaid program in Contra Costa County, various incentives: public health messages, vaccination appointments and either $10 or $50. Vaccination rates did not rise, and in some cases the offer of cash may have made some vaccine-hesitant people more distrustful. Shah, director of the Global Lab for Research in Action at UCLA Luskin, told the Chronicle that the financial incentive may have sent a negative signal, leading participants to think, “ ‘If I should trust the vaccine and get it, why do you have to pay me for it?’ ” The findings by the research team from UCLA, USC and Contra Costa’s Health Services agency were published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.

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U.S. Lags on Paid Leave, Heymann Says

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The New York Times spoke to Jody Heymann, a UCLA distinguished professor of public health, public policy and medicine, about access to family and medical leave. Congressional Democrats are proposing four weeks of paid leave, down from 12 weeks initially sought in their spending plan. If the plan becomes law, the United States will no longer be one of six countries in the world without any form of national paid leave. However, it would still be an outlier. Of the 174 countries that offer paid leave for a personal health problem, just 26 offer four weeks or fewer, according to data from UCLA’s World Policy Analysis Center, which Heymann directs. “When you look at other countries, there is evidence of what people need and what’s feasible,” Heymann said. “And by both of those measures, 12 weeks is a modest amount, and anything less is grossly inadequate. The rest of the world, including low-income countries, has found a way to do this.”

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Garcetti and Yaroslavsky on the Lessons of Leadership

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Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti shared his reflections on the surprises and challenges of leadership in a special episode of the UCLA podcast “Then & Now.” In conversation with longtime public servant Zev Yaroslavsky, now director of the Los Angeles Initiative at UCLA Luskin, Garcetti touched on issues including homelessness, the 2028 Olympic Games and the region’s response to COVID-19. He also summed up lessons learned from political leaders of the past: “Don’t worry about the criticism of today or the headlines of tomorrow. Think about yourself looking back 10 years from now, [asking], ‘Did I make the right decision?’ ” Nominated to serve as U.S. ambassador to India, Garcetti said, “The basic work of politics, whether you’re an ambassador or mayor, is trying to reach people’s hearts … and to bring people together to realize it’s better when we find common ground than when we just shout about what separates us.” ” The podcast is produced by UCLA’s Luskin Center for History and Policy.

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Terriquez Reflects on Intergenerational Advocacy

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Professor of Urban Planning Veronica Terriquez was featured in an episode of PBS SoCal’s “City Rising” documentary series. The episode illustrated the work of young people organizing their communities and participating in public policy, and called on experts to offer the history of youth engagement in the civic arena. “One of the factors that has contributed to young people’s ability to demand a seat at the table has been the decades of organizing, particularly organizing by people of color,” said Terriquez, recalling groups such as the Black Panthers and Asian Americans who paved the way in the fight for social justice. According to Terriquez, this is an intergenerational movement. “People who were involved in the farmworkers movement, who were former Black Panthers, were intentional about training the next generation,” she explained. “I think that gradually, young people are realizing that they can make these government systems work for them better.”

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Tilly Analyzes Restructuring of Best Buy

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Urban Planning Chair Chris Tilly spoke to Retail Dive about the internal reorganization of Best Buy following a recent large wave of layoffs. The company has been struggling to compete against generalist stores, such as Walmart and Target, as well as Amazon. Over the last decade, Best Buy said it prized a “human-centric approach” focusing on the company’s front-line workers, but it recently cut many full-time employees in favor of part-time staff who are expected to be knowledgeable about all areas of the store. “It’s clear that the entire store-based consumer electronics industry has faced incredible pressure from online sales,” Tilly said. “The fact that Best Buy survived and bounced back is miraculous, when a lot of other companies were going down.” The pandemic made competition even tougher by shifting more things online. “If you’re just competing with online sales, what is the difference between Best Buy and Amazon?” Tilly asked.

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Storper on the Evolution of Cities After COVID-19

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UCLA Chancellor Gene Block shared Distinguished Professor of Urban Planning Michael Storper’s research on the evolution of cities at the Milken Institute’s recent Global Conference, which convened thousands of leaders from government, health care, finance, technology, philanthropy, media and higher education to tackle urgent global economic and social issues. Building on the conference’s theme of “Charting a New Course,” Block joined several discussions with the aim of sharing lessons learned from recent social movements and the global pandemic to reimagine a more prosperous future for all. “Cities keep growing and they keep thriving, but they’re changing. We’re seeing from the pandemic something that we refer to as ‘social scarring,’ or deep psychological impact that’s not going away quickly,” Block said, pointing to Storper’s research. “It’s changing people’s behavior and how they feel about density.” The 24th edition of the Global Conference was held in Beverly Hills from Oct. 17-20.

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