Planning for True Equity – Tools to Advance Equitable Urban Planning with Lakeshia Wright

Summary:

This episode is part of our Celebrating Black History Month podcast series where students in the Sustainable Urban Planning program at the George Washington University interview Black and African American planners and urbanists. In this episode, graduate student Ugonna Njeze interviews Lakeshia Wright, AICP, on what equitable urban planning looks like and how to support people of color in the field of urban planning. They discuss skills planners can add to their equity toolkits to promote meaningful change for minority communities. Lakeshia shares her personal journey as a woman of color in the field of urban planning, providing insights on finding joy, overcoming barriers, and using your voice.

Highlights from the Conversation:

• Career milestones
• Understanding unconscious biases and cognitive dissonance
• Navigating contentious topics
• Inclusive urbanism
• Challenging the silo mentality
• Creating a culture of respect
• Building your network
• Advice for emerging professionals
• Impacts of technology on people of color

Guest Mini Bio:

• Lakeshia Wright, AICP, is an urban planner, UX researcher, and data disrupter currently working as a senior UX researcher and strategist at Happy Cog.
• Connect with her on LinkedIn or get in touch via email.

Learn More!

• On biases:
  • 2021 American Planning Association (APA) blog: The Continued Challenges of Bias and Discrimination Within Planning Education
• Equitable urban development case studies:
  • APA’s Equity in Practice
• Using data and technology for equitable planning:
  • Greenlink Equity Map: Community of Practice

Credits:

• A special thanks to guest speaker Lakeshia Wright
• Interview by Ugonna Njeze
• Intro and outro by Alex Davis
• Produced by Reagan Smith