Author/Source:Kirwan Institute, John Powell, Jason Reece, Samir Gambhir, March 2007.
In our metropolitan regions, opportunities are not equally distributed. Opportunities are often geographically clustered in a few communities, while they are lacking or insufficient in others, creating a web of high- and low-opportunity neighborhoods across metropolitan regions. Due to geographic variation, not everyone has access to the critical opportunities needed to excel or advance in life. Many low-income communities, particularly communities of color, are often spatially isolated and segregated from critical opportunities such as high-performing schools, sustainable employment, health care and safe communities. This spatial segregation from opportunity not only limits the creative potential for individuals, but also reduces the creative capacity of the entire region's most important asset, its people. This cumulative effect harms the health of the entire region, impacting everyone.
Mapping the geographic distribution of opportunity helps evaluate where these opportunity mismatches exist in a community. The following report presents the findings of an opportunity analysis or "opportunity mapping" exercise conducted for the Austin metropolitan region. The opportunity maps for Austin provoke critical questions about access to opportunity in the region, and provide insight into what action steps could connect more of Austin's residents to the region's opportunities. Promoting and assuring access to opportunity provides benefits not only to individuals, but makes Austin an economically stronger and more sustainable metropolitan region.
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