Theory of Change
We achieve our mission and vision through a unique combination of:
Research & Ground Truthing
We develop policy analysis and education resources to justify a data-driven, needs-based framework for public infrastructure investments that improve social equity, public health, and environmental sustainability. Our collaborative research efforts are developed in partnership with grassroots leaders to ensure research outcomes align with the lived experiences of impacted communities.
Advocacy
Our advocacy is grounded in the outcomes of our collaborative research. We have developed a unique and trusted professional network that includes local elected officials, public agency leadership and staff, and grassroots community-based partners. This diverse network informs our policy and public investment advocacy strategies, which are designed to create healthier, more equitable, and more environmentally sound communities for all people in Greater Los Angeles, regardless of age, income, or ability.
Capacity-Building
Equitable policy development starts with informed and inclusive dialogue to identify policies and public investments that support social equity, public health, and environmental sustainability. To foster these conversations Investing in Place builds capacity amongst the diverse range of stakeholders in Greater Los Angeles through two signature methods: regular multisectoral convenings and educational policy resources. These methods are especially unique. We bring together grassroots activists and grasstops leaders unlike anyone else in the region and provide accessible analysis of complex policies through multimedia formats that can be understood by people from a variety of educational backgrounds and experiences.
We develop policy analysis and education resources to justify a data-driven, needs-based framework for public infrastructure investments that improve social equity, public health, and environmental sustainability. Our collaborative research efforts are developed in partnership with grassroots leaders to ensure research outcomes align with the lived experiences of impacted communities.
Goals
Support Power Building
Collaborate with organizing advocacy groups that center the voices of historically marginalized communities to influence decision-making for public investment in infrastructure.
Key Activities: We have strengthened our commitment to collaborate with organizing and grassroots efforts by participating in shared campaigns and working to leverage funding to support this work in our grant budgets. In the past two years over 30% of Investing in Place’s annual budget has gone to Los Angeles-based non-profit partners we are working alongside to achieve our transportation advocacy goals.
Create Better Buses for LA
Increase community understanding and engagement to improve the region’s bus system. We are focused on supporting efforts to remove armed police officers from buses and trains, implementation for frequent and reliable bus service, bus only lanes, bus shelters, queue jumpers, signal priority, boarding islands, and all door boarding.
Key Activities: In the summer of 2019, we created the Better Buses for LA work group. It meets monthly and focuses on improving bus speeds and access in the City of Los Angeles. We also support and participate in the work led by ACT-LA and the Transit Justice work group. After years of witnessing beautiful plans that never get implemented, Investing in Place’s effort is focused on budget advocacy and project implementation - while holding Metro and the City of LA accountable.
Champion Moms and Mobility
Bring the perspective of women and mothers to the forefront of transportation decision-making. Historically, transportation design and decision-making have been dominated by privileged, white-centered, male perspectives. This privilege has expressed itself in all aspects of transportation planning and engineering: the travel modes that receive priority, how we define public safety, whose time is considered most valuable, and more. In turn, the voices of women, and more specifically mothers, have been largely unheard.
Key Activities: This year we are working together with the East Side Riders Bike Club, Los Angeles Walks and South Central LAMP in a funded partnership to combine new data and new voices from women to impact policy and investments for the City’s transportation network.
Grow Budget Advocacy
Our power lies in highlighting transportation policy and budget decisions in the City of Los Angeles and at Metro, and connecting with grassroots organizing efforts. We want to collaborate with the growing interest in public budget advocacy. There is an opportunity to support existing coalitions and movements within transportation. Mobility is a priority among the 25,000 people surveyed in the People’s Budget Los Angeles in May 2020, which is a grassroots-led initiative to reimagine public safety.
Key Activities: Through our Moms and Mobility and Better Buses for LA initiatives we are working on creating budget analysis and tools for our partners. We will be holding budget advocacy workshops and collaborative meetings to develop a transportation advocacy platform. This will be used in organizing and will position resources and partners to engage in 2021 budget cuts and subsequent recovery efforts.
Collaborate with organizing advocacy groups that center the voices of historically marginalized communities to influence decision-making for public investment in infrastructure.
Key Activities: We have strengthened our commitment to collaborate with organizing and grassroots efforts by participating in shared campaigns and working to leverage funding to support this work in our grant budgets. In the past two years over 30% of Investing in Place’s annual budget has gone to Los Angeles-based non-profit partners we are working alongside to achieve our transportation advocacy goals.
