E2: Embedding Healthy Equity in Planning ft. Vanessa Barrios

11/06/2025 35 min
E2: Embedding Healthy Equity in Planning ft. Vanessa Barrios

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Episode Synopsis

Join host, Dr. Sam Bowden Akbari, and Vanessa Barrios, RPA’s Director of DEI Initiatives to dive into Vanessa’s main project, the Healthy Regions Planning Exchange (HRPE), a national consortium of planning organizations working to improve health equity through better urban planning.
Materials we discuss can be accessed below!

RPA’s Healthy Regions Planning Exchange website:
https://rpa.org/work/campaigns/health-equity

RPA’s HRPE key publications and blog posts include:

Addressing Racial Inequality in Planning: https://rpa.org/latest/lab/addressing-racial-inequality-in-planning

Investing in Infrastructure for Healthy Communities:
https://rpa.org/work/reports/infrastructure-healthy-communities

Pathways to Health Equity: https://rpa.org/work/reports/pathways-to-health-equity

Preventing Another Ida: Stormwater Management and Basement Apartments in Central

Queens: https://rpa.org/work/reports/hurricane-ida-stormwater-management-queens

Federal Dollars for Local Infrastructure: Tracking IIJA Funding in Our Region: https://rpa.org/latest/lab/tracking-iija-funding

Demystifying Federal Funding for Healthy Communities: https://rpa.org/latest/lab/demystifying-federal-funding-for-healthy-communities

Fostering Cross-Cultural Collaboration and Change: https://rpa.org/latest/lab/fostering-cross-cultural-collaboration-and-change-reflecting-on-the-lakota-media-summit

Housing as a Framework for Health Equity: https://rpa.org/work/reports/housing-as-a-framework-for-health-equity

Reclaiming Public Space for Health Equity: https://rpa.org/work/reports/reclaiming-public-space-for-health-equity

ACT-LA’s “Metro as a Sanctuary” report: https://www.act-la.org/metro-as-a-sanctuary-report/