January 2022 marked the one-year anniversary of Executive Order 13985, the Biden-Harris Administration’s landmark order on Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government, which has resulted in the development of racial equity action plans across 90 federal agencies. The issuance of the executive order last year signaled a promising shift in the federal government’s understanding of its power to realize the aspirations of racial equity and to transform governing systems and structures to become antiracist and equitable. With the order, the administration also affirmed that the federal government has a role, and indeed an imperative, in designing a nation that works for all.

To meet this moment and assist federal agencies in realizing their racial equity aspirations, PolicyLink and Race Forward co-led a Racial Equity Governing Pilot Project with federal agencies in the fall and winter of 2021 and 2022. Building from For Love of Country: A Path for the Federal Government to Advance Racial Equity, which outlined clear actions agencies could consider to further embed racial equity into their work, this report discusses critical elements of these partnership pilots and lessons to inform and support the longer-term aspirations of the federal government to become actively anti-racist. More specifically, this report describes the work that commenced in partnership with agency offices, considers observations and lessons learned along the way, and discusses efforts that must continue at the federal level to fully realize the intentions of the executive order and move this country toward a more racially just future.

Recognizing the inextricable connection between housing and health, made more evident by the COVID-19 pandemic, 19 housing justice leaders were announced as the 2021 cohort of Ambassadors for Health Equity, a venture led by PolicyLink and supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. These leaders, who are focused on building political power and housing solutions in Black, Brown and Indigenous communities worked together as a cohort to leverage and learn from each other’s expertise, align around a vision for housing and health equity, and propel their work collectively toward more power in the housing justice movement.

Throughout 2021, these leaders came together (virtually) to share ideas and experiences, forge new alliances, and collaborate around promoting health equity in their work. This narrative report and vision presentation is an outcome of their journey in envisioning a transformative system of housing and justice and reinforces the values and infrastructure needed to achieve this vision of healthy communities.

The Bay Area Equity Atlas partnered with ReWork the Bay's cross-sector Equity at Work Council and the National Fund for Workforce Solutions to tell a more nuanced story about racial equity gaps in the region’s workforce. The result, The State of Bay Area Workers, is a first-of-its-kind data tool that offers a well-rounded picture of disparities in work and workers for each Bay Area county and the region as a whole. The tool is intended to enable partners and funders to make informed decisions about strategy, policy, and practices that lead to needed changes.

Learn More: 

• State of Bay Area Workers Info Sheet
• Report: Advancing Workforce Equity in the Bay Area 
• Data Deck 
• Recording: Report Launch Event