How ghost streams and redlining’s legacy lead to unfairness in flood risk, in Detroit and elsewhere

Mapping where water once flowed is important for managing flood risk today in Detroit and elsewhere.

Jacob Napieralski, Professor of Geology, University of Michigan-Dearborn • conversation
March 19, 2024 ~8 min

For minorities, biased AI algorithms can damage almost every part of life

Data used to train AI systems often reflects the racism inherent in society.

Arshin Adib-Moghaddam, Professor in Global Thought and Comparative Philosophies, SOAS, University of London • conversation
Aug. 24, 2023 ~6 min


When homes flood, who retreats and to where? We mapped thousands of FEMA buyouts and found distance and race play a role

Two disaster response experts mapped who gets FEMA buyouts and where they go.

Zheye (Jay) Wang, Senior Spatial Research Analyst, Kinder Institute for Urban Research, Rice University • conversation
June 15, 2023 ~9 min

When homes flood, who retreats and to where? We mapped thousands of buyouts and found the average move is only 7 miles, and race plays a role

Two disaster response experts mapped who gets FEMA buyouts and where they go. It turns out, they don’t go far.

Zheye (Jay) Wang, Senior Spatial Research Analyst, Kinder Institute for Urban Research, Rice University • conversation
June 15, 2023 ~9 min

Peaches are a minor part of Georgia's economy, but they're central to its mythology

A 90% crop loss in the Peach State may sound like a disaster, but Georgia isn’t actually the Big Apple of peach production that it claims to be.

William Thomas Okie, Professor of History and History Education, Kennesaw State University • conversation
June 7, 2023 ~13 min

Including race in clinical algorithms can both reduce and increase health inequities – it depends on what doctors use them for

Biased algorithms in health care can lead to inaccurate diagnoses and delayed treatment. Deciding which variables to include to achieve fair health outcomes depends on how you approach fairness.

Anirban Basu, Professor of Health Economics, University of Washington • conversation
May 26, 2023 ~11 min

Atlanta's BeltLine shows how urban parks can drive 'green gentrification' if cities don't think about affordable housing at the start

A longtime critic of Atlanta’s BeltLine explains how the popular network of parks has increased inequality in the city and driven out lower-income residents.

Dan Immergluck, Professor of Urban Studies, Georgia State University • conversation
Jan. 25, 2023 ~10 min

Pit bulls went from America's best friend to public enemy – now they're slowly coming full circle

A scholar of law and humanities compares bans on dogs with any pit bull genes to “one drop” laws that once classified people with even a single Black ancestor as Black.

Colin Dayan, Professor of English, Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities, and Professor of Law, Vanderbilt University • conversation
Oct. 21, 2022 ~10 min


People of color are as interested in buying electric cars as white consumers – the biggest obstacle is access to charging

Reducing air pollution from cars and light trucks would pay big health dividends for low-income and minority communities. A new survey shows how to get more drivers of color into electric vehicles.

Andrea Marpillero-Colomina, Adjunct Lecturer in Urban Studies, The New School • conversation
Sept. 27, 2022 ~6 min

New flood maps show US damage rising 26% in next 30 years due to climate change alone, and the inequity is stark

A street-by-street analysis shows where the risks are rising fastest and also lays bare the inequities of who has to endure America’s crippling flood problem.

Paul Bates, Professor of Hydrology, School of Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol • conversation
Jan. 31, 2022 ~9 min

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