Gentrification

Mapping a Wicked Problem
By Ashlesha Dhotey, Scott Dombkowski, Eunjung Paik, Tammy Tarng

As seen in the city of Pittsburgh, gentrification arises for several reasons; our group felt like we, as university students, might be one of those reasons. This was part of our interest in wanting to explore this complex and not-totally-black-and-white problem. We can all agree that crime is bad, but can we say that whole-heartedly about gentrification?

We initially struggled with determining the causes, and instinctually went straight to the consequences of gentrification. Ultimately, our exploration included the below questions:

• Is gentrification inherently bad? Were the existing residents of an area undergoing gentrification gentrifiers when they moved into the area?
• Do seemingly relevant factors actually have something to do with gentrification or are those just our assumption?
• What about Pittsburgh specifically separates it from other cities that fit our first set of criteria for gentrification potential?
• How much of gentrification in Pittsburgh is circular, with systems in place for a long time?

Some things we would wish to further research include, for example, why the new and old residents of an area undergoing gentrification don’t move towards working together to build a community that works for both of them. We were also curious about exploring the steel industry relation to gentrification, but before drawing more concrete connections, would have wanted to do more research first.

This exercise gave us the opportunity to reflect on the causes of gentrification, and part of that included understanding the stakeholders involved (as shown below). To map this, we considered who was involved, invested, and a part of gentrification. We then drew lines connecting stakeholders with each other, some with conflicted interest, some who could work together, and some who had more complicated relationships.

Key Findings:

• One single consequence does not cause gentrification. Gentrification is the result of a whole load of consequences.
• Education and reputation plays a huge role in the seeds of gentrification.
• The loss of steel town identity leaves a void for investors and businesses to fill.
• Without this framework, we wouldn’t have begun to consider Pittsburgh’s personality and mechanics as both a geographical and cultural midpoint, and how it became such a prime candidate for gentrification would have gotten lost in the weeds.

This map is an ever-evolving map that is interconnected with other significant wicked problems maps. Mapping this problem helped us understand the scope of the transition design process in a 360° perspective into the complexity of the systems we live in.