To assist its Advisory Committee in developing a definition of regional equity for Regional Equity Atlas 2.0, CLF created a menu of potential language for each of the components of the definition. The menu draws from the definitions of equity developed by a range of local and national organizations. The revised menu below also includes the language from CLF’s definition. This menu may be a useful starting point in developing your own definition of equity.
What population or community are you talking about?
- “All residents”
- “Everyone”
- “All people”
- “All communities”
- “All individuals, regardless of markers of difference including but not limited to race, ethnicity, income, disability, and age”
- “All people and communities, regardless of race, ethnicity, income, age, gender, language, sexual orientation, ability, health status and other markers of identity”
What opportunities or resources should this population or community be able to access?
- “For meeting their basic needs [or satisfying essential needs]”
- “For advancing their health and well-being“
- “For improving their life chances”
- “For achieving their full potential”
- “For realizing their vision for success”
- “Essential ingredients for economic and social success”
- “Neighborhood resources and connections to opportunity-rich areas within their region”
- “Equal privilege and opportunity to access the basic needs, services, skills, and assets required to succeed in life”
- “To experience the benefits and share the costs of growth and change”
- “The power to shape the future of their communities through public decision-making processes that are transparent, inclusive, and engage the community as full partners”
- “The ability to shape their own present and future”
- “Involved as full and equal partners in public decision-making”
- “Have a voice in the future of their own community”
- “Feel welcome to play an active role in the life of their neighborhoods and in the formal processes of their municipality”
What changes will provide more equitable access to these resources and opportunities?
- “The intentional examination of policies and practices (both past and present) that, even if they have the appearance of fairness, may, in effect, serve as barriers that perpetuate disparities”
- “The prioritization of policies, infrastructure, and investments to ensure that all people and communities can thrive”
- “An understanding of historical contexts and the active investment in social structures over time“
- “Recognize and dismantle intentional and de facto policies and practices that maintain privilege among historically advantaged groups”
- “The costs and benefits of economic, social, and environmental systems and policies are borne equally by different groups of people”
- “The benefits and burdens of growth and change are equitably shared across our communities”
Why is this important?
- “We all have a shared fate and a shared responsibility —as individuals within a community and communities within society”
- “Our region’s future depends on the success of all of its populations”
- “To create a prosperous region, we must ensure that everyone in our region benefits from the opportunities the region provides so that we are all able to thrive”
- “Equity is not just a moral imperative – it is an economic one”
- “As our region becomes more racially, ethnically, and age-diverse, our shared prosperity depends on our ability to create conditions that will allow everyone to flourish.”
- “Inequity means differences in well-being that disadvantage one individual or group in favor of another. These differences are systematic, patterned and unfair and can be changed.”
- “Inequities are not random; they are caused by past and current decisions, systems of power and privilege, policies and the implementation of those policies.”
- “Differences in population health can be traced to unequal economic and social conditions and are systematic and avoidable and thus inherently unfair.”
Sources: Clark County Public Health, Coalition for a Livable Future, Coalition of Communities of Color, Greater Portland Pulse, King County, Kirwan Institute, Multnomah County Health Equity Initiative, Northwest Health Foundation, Opportunity Agenda, Policy Link, Portland Plan, and STAR Community Index.