Over the course of five regional town hall discussions hosted by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) and the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB), area officials considered how to best manage and respond to challenging current events—from COVID-19 and a recession to a national reckoning on race.
Source: UNC
Through data presentations, breakout sessions, remarks from special guests, and discussion, “Leaning In to 2021: More Equitable, More Resilient” town hall attendees strategized about leading through times of turbulence and seizing new opportunities to shape a stronger region.
To begin the series, Dr. Jim Johnson of the University of North Carolina presented the group with demographics interrupting the status quo nationwide, including in metropolitan Washington. Johnson facilitated the series along with Professor Jeanne Miliken Bonds.
“Our shifting demography is the foundation and the base for any strategy we might develop,” said Johnson.
As examples, he spoke about the shift in the composition of the nation’s population, what he called the “browning” and “graying” of America, or growth of the immigration-based population and changes in longevity of the population, declining fertility, and aging baby boomers.
Source: UNC
Johnson said the presence of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in communities will be key to responding to these shifts and determining where people and businesses locate in the future.
“I was so pleased…when the COG Board of Directors unanimously affirmed racial equity as a fundamental value,” said 2020 COG Board Chair and Prince George’s County Council Member Derrick L. Davis in his remarks at the town hall. “This action was an unprecedented statement of solidarity. Today, with this series, I think we are taking another important step in this journey.”
This concept, reputational equity—the commitment to dismantling interpersonal, institutional, structural, and systemic inequities—was the focus of the second town hall.
Charles County Board of Commissioners President Reuben Collins helped kick off the session by describing rapidly changing demographics in his county over the last decade. According to Collins, this has led the county to “address more fully the issues related to diversity,” including hiring a Chief Equity Officer in 2020.
Over the last three years, seven COG jurisdictions have established similar Chief Equity Officer positions, and COG has added a Chief Equity Officers Committee to serve as the hub for advancing racial equity initiatives throughout the region
“It’s well researched that equity, diversity, and inclusion drives innovation and improves outcomes, however the misperceptions about what equity is and why it matters can impede progress and create a new set of challenges if we’re not strategic in our approach,” said Collins.
Johnson walked attendees through a checklist of focus areas leaders can use to strengthen reputational equity.
Source: UNC
The third town hall of the series focused on dismantling barriers to resilient, equitable, and inclusive community development by focusing on whole community health.
Research by the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Center on Society and Health for COG and other studies show that factors like income, race, housing, and environment shape health outcomes, and underscore the importance of a holistic approach to planning that incorporates equity.
Guest speakers Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chair Ann Wheeler and Montgomery County Councilmember Will Jawando shared several related initiatives in their own communities.
“We’re really trying to embrace the change that’s happening in our region,” said Wheeler, who noted the county’s endorsement of the region’s new greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal, among several other environmental, mental, social health initiatives underway.
Jawando pointed to Montgomery County’s recent landmark racial equity and social justice policy, which requires analysis of the racial equity impacts of legislation, budgetary decisions, and other county actions.
“Information is only half of it, you have to take the steps to disentangle the historic inequities that have led to where we are, and that’s hard work,” said Jawando, who noted that leaders will need to do more to position all communities to thrive as the region recovers from COVID-19.
Bonds shared some of the tools government leaders can leverage to drive equitable and inclusive development, from inclusive hiring practices, to equity in contracting, innovative impact investing, and much more.
Source: UNC
The fourth town hall focused on how area leaders can build and then leverage collective ambition, particularly across the region, to accomplish this work.
In opening remarks, City of Frederick Alderman Kelly Russell spoke about the TPB's action to establish equity as a fundamental value and integral part of all its work activities. Russell served as Chair of the TPB in 2020.
“We recognized with humility there are many aspects of our society that we are not fully aware of, but do need to recognize and understand,” said Russell.
Source: UNC
The group discussed how it takes effective leadership like this to build collective ambition in communities, including a clear vision, integrity, authenticity, and acute sensitivity to social, political, and demographic context, among other characteristics.
By embodying these leadership principles and encouraging collaboration, officials can build collective ambition to pursue a new “new” deal for the region that leads to greater prosperity, more equitable and inclusive development, and ultimately, greater resiliency.
2021 COG Board Chair and District of Columbia Councilmember Robert C. White, Jr. began the final town hall by sharing some of the ways D.C. is pursuing equity, including passing the Restore the Vote Amendment Act to restore voting rights to incarcerated felons and establishing a new racial equity office, among other actions.
Facilitators then discussed innovative ways that institutional and community leaders can better understand and facilitate impact investing for positive change in their communities, especially as collective ambition builds behind important values like equity.
Source: UNC
“Acting on [equity] is tough because it involves reorienting ourselves around privilege and customs, it involves making changes to our laws and policies, but that’s what we signed up to do as officials and regional leaders,” said White.
View video and presentations for each town hall in the series:
Town Hall #1: Out of Crisis into Crisis: Understanding the Impact of Emerging Trends, Current Events on Planning
Town Hall #2: Does Your County, City, or Town Have “Reputational Equity”?
Town Hall #3: A Whole Community Health Approach to Sustainable Community Development
Town Hall #4: Building Collective Ambition for a “New” New Deal
Town Hall #5: Investing to Sustain Whole Community Health