Research Reports

Energy Democracy is a framework that is grounded in the solutions of BIPOC communities to invest in a regenerative economy that sustains our people and our planet. 

Following up on the two years since the release of Building the We, this report explores the efforts of a community-focused collaborative government decision-making process.

This report provides a broad picture for the field’s leaders and professionals of how the workers they serve are framed in the media coverage of jobs in two expanding, higher wage industries — technology and health care.

Food systems work is connected to the ways communities of color experience injustice. “Reframing Food Hubs” shares stories, insights, lessons, and recommendations for transforming the field of food systems work to create racially equitable outcomes.

In the fastest growing sectors of the United States, this report identifies barriers to achieving equitable employment outcomes for workers of color in the workforce development field.

[VIDEO] In a context of mounting racial tension, Salinas government and community advocates collaborated to bring about a new initiative aimed at addressing the root causes of inequity and division within the city. "Building the We," published by Race Forward, features key successes and lessons from the local leaders who ushered in a new agenda for the City of Salinas: Healing-Informed Governing for Racial Equity.

Confronting Racial Bias at Work: Challenges and Solutions for 21st Century Employment Discrimination, published by Race Forward, presents findings and recommendations to advance proactive systemic solutions that promote racially equitable outcomes. This report was prepared as a resource for racial and social justice-inclined consumers, worker advocates, particularly in industries with over-representation of women of color, and legal and labor journalists.

August is National Breastfeeding Month, and August 25-31 is Black Breastfeeding Week. In this report, we outline the barriers to breastfeeding that communities of color face, as well as recommend policies and practices to address racial inequity in First Food.

Race Forward’s Clocking-In project is an innovative, interactive, multi-media tool that shows racial and gender inequities in the restaurant, retail, and domestic industries.

The food system works for some, but fails too many of us. Yet, we already have a glimpse of the possibility of a just and healthy food system. To get there, we must use a critical race lens to diagnose what is wrong with our current system, assess entry points for change, and determine ways that we can work together to build a better system for all of us. This report shares an analysis of what it means to build a racially equitable food system – from field to farm to fork – and lays out steps toward achieving that goal.

"Moving the Race Conversation Forward" is a report by Race Forward: The Center for Racial Justice Innovation that aims to reshape and reform the way we talk about race and racism in our country.

Who is most impacted by inequity in the food system? Low income people and people of color are disproportionately affected by obesity, food deserts, and wage violations. Our newest report looks at opportunities to create healthy communities by linking the movements for good food and good jobs.

Millennials, Activism and Race offers insights about young people's views on activism and race. The “Millennial Generation” (born post-1980, ages 18-30) is the largest, most racially and ethnically diverse generation the US has ever known. What inspires them to engage in social justice work?

Focus Group Quotes, ARC's 2012 Report Millennials, Activism and Race

In this report, we discuss the best strategies for talking about race that will lead us to racially equitable policy solutions.

Revisit Race Forward's groundbreaking national research on the perilous intersection of immigration enforcement and the child welfare system, which is resulting in the separation of thousands of families across the U.S. — in many cases, permanent separation.

Recovery, Interrupted: Gulf Coast Communities of Color Five Years After Hurricane Katrina, a new report by the Center for Social Inclusion, reminds us that disasters are not simply about strong winds or powerful explosions. They are about access to opportunity. Whether quality health services, educational options and public transit are available to and affordable for residents has a tremendous influence on how a community will fare in the face of threats. All too often, the communities that are most vulnerable to disaster are communities of color or poor communities of all races that lack access to such critical opportunities.

In these challenging times, Americans must contend with corporate irresponsibility—like British Petroleum’s failure to address safety concerns on its rigs, increasingly frequent hurricanes and tornadoes in the Gulf Coast region and beyond, and crumbling roads, bridges and schoolhouses. Less obvious but even more important are the increasing poverty and social dislocation experienced by too many Americans. In 2009, the poverty rate hit an 11-year high of 13.2%— representing nearly 40 million individuals— and between 2000 and 2009 median weekly wages fell for high school and college graduates alike.

A new report by the Center for Social Inclusion, Energy Democracy: Community Scale Green Energy Solutions, offers a unique approach to building a green energy economy that strengthens communities of color, while increasing the benefits of clean energy for the country at large.

The potential of renewable energy and small-scale electricity production has led us to conclude that community-owned or controlled renewable energy will offer diverse benefits to communities and the regions around them.

ARC releases two *new* Green Case Studies that profile winning formulas
for jobs creation to improve our communities while helping the planet.