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WHAT I DO Over the last decade, I have given hundreds of speeches, lectures, and workshops on how urban sprawl, racial segregation, and concentrated poverty interact and impact a region’s growth patterns, social equity, and quality of life. In this respect, I share a common perspective with john powell and Myron Orfield, my colleagues as National Strategic Partners of the Gamaliel network of faith-based coalitions. (The Gamaliel network is committed to achieving greater social equity and opportunity within a region-wide framework.) I have visited over 100 regions in the USA as well as lectured and consulted in Canada, England, Germany, South Africa, and The Netherlands. All programs for statewide or local audiences are tailored to the specific land use, economic, and social trends of that community. I usually prepare by analyzing census data from 1950 to 2000, property tax records, school “report cards,” recent newspaper articles, and local studies. I always ask my sponsors to provide me with recent background reports and welcome a chance to take a tour of the region. You can access a guide to all of my documents that
are posted on this website by clicking
The David Rusk Document Library here or
on any page of this site. They are organized into international,
national, and state sections; within each state are listed the metro
areas that I have visited where related documents are posted. Speeches All of my talks are framed within a common
perspective, but different talks can emphasize different dimensions of
the problems. (The posted documents are typically articles based on my
remarks; as such, they are more detailed – and probably less
entertaining – than I hope that my talks are.) Recent examples are
urban sprawl and growth management (see Kentucky: Louisville: “Smart
Growth – What Really Works” (October 10, 2001) concentrated poverty and
public schools (see New York: Buffalo: “A Tale of Two Schools” (June 2,
2001) mixed-income housing through inclusionary zoning (see Florida:
Statewide: “Inclusionary Zoning: Living – and Learning Together”
(October 23, 2001) or Massachusetts: Statewide: “Inclusionary Zoning:
Building on Massachusetts’ Success” (November 15, 2001) organizing
regionally for economic development (see New York: Utica-Rome: “The
Mohawk Valley Compact” (first presented February 26, 1996; reiterated
November 7, 2001) Workshops Workshops are usually structured around overhead
presentations in which I encourage constant group give-and-take. I
always ask the sponsors to provide a hard copy of the overheads for all
participants. (For a very thorough, two-part workshop presentation,
see Michigan: Detroit: “Michigan 2003: Overcoming Sprawl, Race, and
Concentrated Poverty” (June 2000).) I will readily train a local
speakers bureau to use such materials. Research Studies I also carry out two kinds of research studies: public policy evaluations and multi-region surveys. An example of a public policy evaluation would be Illinois: Chicago: “De-concentrating Poverty: the Chicago Housing Authority’s Plan for Transformation” (December 15, 2000). For an international example, two shorter articles summarize a much longer report that I and Dutch colleagues at ABF Strategie of Amsterdam and Delft completed for the Dutch government. (See International: The Netherlands: “Inside Game/Outside Game: Segregation and Spatial Planning in Metropolitan Areas” and “Portland’s Urban Growth Boundary: Model for the Dutch “Red Contours” and “Green Contours” (March 12, 2001).) An example of a multi-region survey is National:
Brookings Institution: “The ‘Segregation Tax’: The Cost of Racial
Segregation to Black Homeowners (October 2001). Technical Assistance I also provide clients with technical assistance
towards achieving public policy reforms. An example would be
“Specifications for a Model Inclusionary Zoning Law” provided as an
appendix to the Florida and Massachusetts presentations on inclusionary
zoning cited above. However, I am not a process consultant that, in
neutral fashion, guides clients through a strategic planning process.
I have a specific point of view to share that is based on my experience
and data analysis. I will help clients devise public education
strategies and campaigns to secure changes in the “rules of the game.” “Rusk Reports” Beyond my three books, my largest undertakings have been a series of community studies that are published in full as inserts in metropolitan daily newspapers. I have done such studies for York, Pennsylvania; Kalamazoo and Battle Creek-Calhoun County, Michigan; and New Orleans and have mentored the study carried out by Wittenberg University faculty for Springfield, Ohio. These are not posted on this website. The York study can be accessed through the York Daily Record: Rusk Report. This excellent website is representative of the other four reports that are available only in hard copy from local sponsors. |
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copyright© David Rusk |
