Designing Systems Interventions
Gentrification in Pittsburgh
TEAM CATALYST
Team Members
- Charmaine Qiu, charmaiq@andrew.cmu.edu
- Aman Sinha, amansinh@andrew.cmu.edu
- Gloria Moon, gmoon@andrew.cmu.edu
- Yongwen Dai, yongwend@andrew.cmu.edu
Introduction
Assignment #5, Designing Systems Interventions, is the fifth and final assignment that explores the transition design approach for tackling complex, wicked problems and initiating systems-level changes. Building upon and completing the course journey, our team further examined the wicked problem of Gentrification in Pittsburgh. Gentrification refers to the process of transforming a neighborhood’s character by bringing in more affluent residents and businesses, which often results in the displacement of current inhabitants. Pittsburgh is one of the most gentrified cities in the United States, with several well-known neighborhoods still undergoing gentrification. For this assignment, we designed an ‘ecology’ of systems interventions that act as a first, tangible step on the transition pathway toward the desired future. Our work shows how each project and initiative contributes to supporting systems-level changes.
Brainstorming types of solutions
Based on our previous research, we have identified four distinct types of solutions for promoting equitable urbanism. These include dismantling problematic solutions, maintaining effective solutions, introducing innovative approaches, and pursuing future findings.
In order to create a more equitable urban environment, it is crucial to address certain elements that contribute to gentrification and inequality. Specifically, it is important to eliminate practices such as redlining, exclusionary zoning, infinite luxury apartments, gentrification marketing, racial discrimination, and neglect of diversity. These elements perpetuate inequity and hinder progress towards a more inclusive urban community.
Fortunately, there are also a number of positive practices and policies that can help alleviate gentrification and promote equitable development. Examples of effective strategies include the implementation of affordable housing policies, zoning reform, community land trusts, equitable development promotion, community engagement and participatory planning, and increased access to public transit. These practices have been shown to effectively address issues of gentrification and promote more inclusive urban environments.
In addition to these established practices, there are also emerging ideas and approaches that hold great promise for promoting equitable urbanism. Examples include co-housing, demodification, participatory urban design, cooperatives, and the commoning of resources. These innovative approaches offer new opportunities for addressing urban inequality and promoting greater inclusivity in urban communities.
By embracing these practices and approaches, we can build a more equitable urban environment where inclusion and love are the foundation of our communities.
Categories of Interventions
Infrastructure/Technology/Science
To address the complex issue of gentrification, it is necessary to implement a multi-level approach that incorporates infrastructure, technology, and science-based interventions. This requires targeting the issue at the household, neighborhood, city, national, and global levels.
At the household level, the Modular Building Institute promotes the use of modular construction to build affordable, sustainable, and high-quality housing quickly and efficiently. The Urban Land Institute (ULI) promotes the development of mixed-use neighborhoods that include affordable housing, commercial space, and community amenities at the neighborhood level.
Initiatives like Transit Connect seek to expand transportation to provide access to resources like education, healthcare, and occupation for all residents at the city level. At the national level, the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program provides tax credits to developers who build affordable housing for low-income families.
Finally, at the global level, the Paris Agreement prioritizes the needs of vulnerable communities by encouraging the development and implementation of climate mitigation and adaptation strategies.
Politics/Governance/Legal
To address the issue of gentrification from a politics, governance, and legal perspective, it is essential to implement interventions at the neighborhood, state, and global levels.
Participatory Budgeting is a democratic process that allows community members to decide how to allocate public funds for local projects, thereby increasing community engagement and supporting more equitable distribution of public resources at the neighborhood level.
At the state level, the Tenant Protection Act of 2019 in California was signed into law, which caps rent increases and provides eviction protections for tenants. This helps to ensure that tenants are not displaced from their homes due to rising rents and allows for more stable and affordable housing options.
At the global level, the International Labour Organization (ILO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that promotes social justice and decent working conditions worldwide. The ILO has developed a set of international labor standards that are binding on member states and include provisions on the elimination of forced labor, child labor, and discrimination in the workplace. By promoting fair labor practices, the ILO helps to ensure that vulnerable populations are not exploited in the global economy.
Business/Economic
To effectively address gentrification from a business and economic perspective, there are several projects and initiatives we found that are contributing to build a better community from various levels.
At the household level, The NeighborhoodLIFT program provides down payment assistance and financial education to low- and moderate-income homebuyers, increasing access to homeownership and wealth-building opportunities. At the same time, these interventions at the household level need to connect with neighborhood-level solutions to ensure that affordable housing is available and accessible.
Community Land Trusts are a neighborhood-level solution that creates long-term affordability requirements and community ownership structures, preventing displacement and creating stable, equitable neighborhoods. However, to be successful, these solutions need to connect with state-level funding and policy frameworks that prioritize affordable housing and equitable development.
State-level policies, such as the New York State Homes and Community Renewal agency’s funding for affordable housing development and preservation, can create more affordable housing options and increase access to stable housing for low- and moderate-income households. However, these solutions need to connect with global-level frameworks, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), that prioritize economic development and reducing inequality, creating more equitable and just societies globally.
Social
In terms of social interventions for tackling gentrification, there are various approaches that can be taken at different levels.
At the household level, residents can participate in neighborhood associations and community groups to advocate for their own interests and work towards creating more inclusive communities. This can include organizing events, sharing resources, and building relationships with neighbors of different backgrounds.
At the neighborhood level, a mandatory community history class in K-12 schools could teach students about the history of the neighborhood, including its diverse communities, and ways to promote inclusivity to newcomers with community event participation. This approach can help create a more welcoming environment and prevent displacement of long-time residents.
On the city level, the Urban Sustainability Directors Network is a network of local government officials working to promote sustainable and equitable development practices in cities across the United States. The network promotes policies that prioritize the needs of low-income residents and communities of color, and advocates for sustainable development practices that avoid gentrification. This can include implementing zoning laws that protect affordable housing, supporting community land trusts, and promoting mixed-income neighborhoods.
Finally, on the global level, the Green New Deal includes policies that promote clean energy development, sustainable agriculture, and environmentally responsible development practices. It aims to create jobs and strengthen local economies, which can help prevent displacement and gentrification. The Green New Deal emphasizes the importance of equity, and seeks to address the root causes of social and economic inequality through a holistic approach to sustainable development.
Environmental
The challenge of gentrification can also be addressed from an environmental perspective, by implementing interventions that promote sustainable development practices. At the household level, the Solarize program in Portland, Oregon is an example of a program that provides financial incentives for homeowners to install solar panels, promoting clean energy development and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
On a neighborhood level, the Green Infrastructure Leadership Exchange is a network of cities and organizations that work together to advance green infrastructure practices, including the creation of green roofs, rain gardens, and other stormwater management systems. These practices help to mitigate the impacts of climate change while also promoting more sustainable and resilient communities.
At the state level, the California Energy Commission’s Renewable Energy Program aims to increase the use of renewable energy in California and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This program helps to create a more sustainable and equitable energy system while also addressing the impacts of climate change.
On a global level, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) promotes sustainable resource management practices and advocates for the implementation of policies and programs that address climate change. The UNEP works with governments, businesses, and civil society organizations to promote sustainable development practices and mitigate the impacts of climate change.
By targeting gentrification at various levels and implementing these interventions, we can work towards creating more inclusive, sustainable, and equitable urban communities that prioritize the needs of all residents.
Challenges
Developing an ecology of systems interventions that are connected to each other is a complex and multifaceted task, in which our team faced a number of challenges in the process.
Our team understands that the proposed ecology needs support, collaboration, and empathy between various stakeholders in diverse fields. When brainstorming initial ideas for interventions, we focused on how each concept can contribute to the future of equitable urban development in each of the guided categories. The solutions made sense individually; however, it was challenging to imagine how might they coordinate with each other. To help ourselves sense-make which interventions can live in the final ecology, our team first decided to identify a key crucial solution that best represents insights from our past work in the course. As our future vision focuses on addressing inequality and community engagement, we chose Transit Connect, an initiative to expand transportation to span from community housing to other parts of the cities, to begin with. From that, we developed other solutions that require building trust, fostering open communication, and aligning goals across different groups that connect with each other in the ecology.
Our team did our best to utilize systems thinking to address the interconnectedness between factors like housing, transportation, education, health, and the environment. Nevertheless, our knowledge gained from pure research throughout this semester may overlook some of the nuances that only stakeholders who experienced the root causes of gentrification could understand. We empathize with individuals who lived through systemic racism, poverty, and exclusion, and we tried to represent the perspectives of their needs in our solutions. Our team understood that solution-ing requires collaboration between experts in various fields and meaningful engagement from real stakeholders. This challenge pertains to every solver of wicked problems, and we are committed to continuing our learning about gentrification and efforts to address the issue.
Insights
Our work presents an ‘ecology’ of systems interventions designed to address the wicked problem of gentrification in Pittsburgh. One key insight from all our assignments is the importance of considering multiple levels of intervention when addressing a complex problem like gentrification. Gentrification is a multifaceted issue that affects different levels of society, including individuals, neighborhoods, cities, states, and even global communities. We recognize this and suggest that solutions must be designed to address the issue at all these levels.
Another important insight from this paper is the need for a range of interventions that dismantle problematic solutions, maintain effective solutions, introduce innovative approaches, and pursue future findings. By adopting a range of interventions, we can demonstrate that it is possible to create a more equitable urban environment.
Lastly, we have highlighted the importance of community engagement and participatory planning in the design of interventions. We believe that solutions that involve community members in the planning and implementation process are more likely to be effective and sustainable.
Reflection
As a team, we have delved deeply into the world of transition design and the intricacies involved in crafting a well-planned transition. The process of change is complex, and we have gained an appreciation for the depth and breadth of wicked problems that societies grapple with on a daily basis. Armed with the tools and insights we’ve gained from this course, we feel better equipped to tackle these challenges and create meaningful solutions.
Transition design is a critical subject that is highly relevant in today’s rapidly changing world. As we each embark on our separate paths, we will continue to keep a lookout for future opportunities, interventions, and planning that will enable us to make a positive impact in the world around us. We are grateful to our teammates, peers, and instructors for their guidance and support throughout this course, which has been an incredible learning journey for all of us. We are confident that the knowledge and skills we’ve gained will serve us well in our future endeavors. Thank you!
References
- Klein, Daniel. “Artists and Neighborhood Change, Probing Gentrification — EVOLVEEA.” Evolve EA, 12 May 2020, https://evolveea.com/artists-and-neighborhood-change/.
- Ncrc. (2019, April 9). Pittsburgh City Paper: Pittsburgh is one of the most gentrified cities in the U.S. “ NCRC. NCRC. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
- “Neighborhoods in Transition: Gentrification Hits Pittsburgh.” The Pitt News, 16 Sept. 2014, https://pittnews.com/article/3509/news/neighborhoods-in-transition-gentrification-hits-pittsburgh/.
- Shifting neighborhoods: Gentrification and cultural displacement in American cities “ NCRC. NCRC. (2022, November 2). Retrieved April 1, 2023, from https://ncrc.org/gentrification/
- Special to the Capital-Star, P. C.-S. M. 4. (2021, May 4). How rising rents and renovations have displaced Pittsburghers and added to the city’s ongoing issues with gentrification — Pennsylvania capital. Star. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
- The Pittsburgh Neighborhood Project. (2022, November 19). Gentrification and displacement in Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh Neighborhood Project. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
- You don’t have to go far to find gentrification in Pittsburgh. utimes. (n.d.). Retrieved January 27, 2023.
