The Racial Equity Dividend: Buffalo’s Great Opportunity

In partnership with Make Communities, UBRI developed a foundational research study for the Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable.

Convened by the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, the Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable was established in 2016 to reduce the disparate outcomes and opportunities experienced by regional residents of different races. It includes more than 30 community leaders from public, private, nonprofits and faith institutions convened to advance racial equity and promote the change required to accelerate a shared regional prosperity.

In the roundtable’s inaugural year, UBRI partnered with Make Communities to develop a foundational report aimed at understanding the racial equity gaps in the Buffalo Niagara region. Released in December of 2016, the report identifies seventeen indicators that collectively gauge progress in reducing racial equity gaps across: education and workforce preparation; income and wealth; neighborhoods and quality of life; and criminal justice and safety. Further, the report projects the benefits that the entire region will see economically, in more vibrant neighborhoods, and in a higher quality of life when all people have access to the same level of opportunity.