In partnership with Next City, we unpack the history and policy that have shaped the community development sector and creative, anti-racist practices to move forward.

In partnership with Community Opportunity Alliance, we explored the roles of resident voice in community development, and what it means for anti-racist community development to hold the sanctity of resident voice.

In partnership with Next City, we unpack just how important health, healing, and reparative work are to advancing anti-racist community development.

In partnership with Next City, we examine the dominant narratives operating just under the surface in community development ... and what it takes to change them.

This Next City podcast episode explores the layered history of American community development and the policies that have shaped (and torn) the fabric of our communities.

Next City interviews ThirdSpace about the Anti-Racist Community Development research project - what we found and what it means for the future of the sector.

An audio literary piece from T.R. Brown, one of her many contributions as a Storied Communities, Community Stories research partner. The piece is an ode to her respect and adoration I felt for the people and the place that are Memphis.

An audio art piece from Benny Starr, one of his contributions to our exploration of the intersections between environmental justice and anti-racist community development.

Community development has to contend with generational, intentional withholding of capital from communities of color. Interviewees offer their thoughts on what that means for the sector today and in an anti-racist future.

Community development is far more than just real estate - it also has to be about the well-being of the people inside those buildings. Interviewees draw connections between health, healing, healthcare, and community development.

Who leads in community development, how they lead, and how well supported along the way has a profound impact on whether the sector moves in equitable ways or not. Interviewees offer their thoughts on what leadership development looks like ... and what it should look like.

The stories we tell ourselves in community development matter a whole lot to what we do and how we do it. Interviewees identified 11 dominant community development narratives and offered recommendations for doing narrative change work in the sector.

Community development can't be about just today. Interviewees share thoughts on the role of reckoning with the past and realizing the future for today's sector.

Policy has historically played an enormous role in how our country and our communities approach the intersection of race, place, and wealth. Interviewees share their thoughts on the legacy of racism in community development policy and what anti-racist community development policy can look like.

Values matter in very real ways. Interviewees identified five anti-racist community development principles and set of additional prompts for exploration.

As the racial wealth gap remains stubbornly persistent despite decades of community development investment, interviewees grapple with what's holding back Black and brown wealth-building and what we can do to catalyze real wealth shifts.

Bria Benjamin is an artist, designer, illustrator, and writer. Whether through prose or illustration, she interrogates Blackness, beauty, gender, and the politics of all these subjects intertwined. Her story "Ghost Hunter" was a finalist in Fugue's 2023 Fiction Contest. While a Texan at heart, she currently resides in Brooklyn, NY.

Born in Veracruz, Mexico and raised in the vibrant cultural landscape of Chicago, Brian Herrera emerged as a multifaceted artist blending illustration, design, and storytelling. His work delves into the complexities of immigrant identity, infusing his work with a passion for music and street art.

Briauna Williams is a Minneapolis native also working out of North Dallas. She is a self-taught acrylic artist, muralist, published illustrator and community engagement artist who uses paint to spread joy and inspiration and to tell her and her communities’ stories. #BriiNoir

Gabriela Aleman is a multidisciplinary artist and organizer born and raised in San Francisco’s Mission District. Her work, published under her artist name Smug Morenita, consists of boldly colored images that range from protest art to reimagined cultural iconography, resonating with the aesthetic of comics, folklore and pop art.

Gregg Deal (Pyramid Lake Paiute) is a contemporary artist who challenges Western perception of Indigenous peoples, touching on issues of race, history and stereotype. Through his work - Paintings, murals, performance art, filmmaking and spoken word - Deal critically examines issues and tells stories of decolonization and appropriation that affect Indian Country. Deal’s activism exists in his art, as well as his participation in political movements.

Jeni Jenkins (she/her) is an artist and designer engaged in projects aimed at cultivating empathy, driving positive change, and fostering inclusive, sustainable progress. At the essence of her work lies a dedication to confronting social injustice and reshaping systems of civic engagement and belonging.

Memphis, Tennessee-based multidisciplinary artist Jeremy Matthew has spent the last several years refining his skills in portraiture, both realism and abstraction. Fascinated not only by the lives that other people live but also by the simple fact that no two people are alike, Jeremy is compelled to explore the wonder and intimacy that lives within the stories of others.

Joe Williams (Waȟpethuŋwaŋ Dakota) is director of Native American programs at Plains Art Museum in Fargo and a 2023 Bush Foundation Fellow. Williams is a storyboard artist with an MFA in visual effects from the Academy of Art University and a BA in American Indian Studies from the University of South Dakota.

Kayla Yukie Kosaki is a queer yonsei uchinanchu community-taught artist living in Cleveland, Ohio. Born and raised in Hilo, Hawai'i, her work toward social justice is guided by her love and responsibility to the many communities she's privileged to be a part of. As an artist, she creates visual invitations to liberatory futures worth fighting for.

Kim Thái Nguyễn is an artist and illustrator currently living in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Her illustrations usually involve characters, delicate lines, and bright colors. When she’s not drawing for others, she’s exploring her interests, identity, and culture (as a child of Vietnamese immigrants) through personal art and zines.

Lo Harris is a multidisciplinary artist known for her bold, colorful, and empowering work that celebrates confidence, authenticity, and the power within each of us. Her vibrant characters and affirming messages inspire self-love and community upliftment.

Marco Tirado (he/him) is a Queer Latine illustrator living in Philadelphia, PA. His work is characterized by a love for fashion, color, and playful figures. On his off time, he enjoys reading comics, watching horror movies, and gaming with his fiancé.

Pedro Fequiere Jr, is a multidisciplinary artist currently based in Los Angeles. He spends most of his downtime creating art and music. He worked as a Staff Writer for BuzzFeed, and his work has been featured on MTV, Huffington Post, and Afropunk. His music has received acclaim from Erykah Badu, Hot 97’s Peter Rosenberg, and J. Rawls. He holds a BA in illustration from Columbus College of Art & Design.

Racquel Banaszak (Bad River Band of Ojibwe) is a visual artist and educator based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her people are from the northern waters and woodlands. She has grown up around Native and urban communities. She is continually inspired by her mother’s stories, urban relocation, and Indigenous pop culture.

Victor Melendez is an Art Director, designer and illustrator based in Seattle, originally from Mexico. His work is a combination of bold lines, vivid colors, organic forms and mysterious, spellbinding characters. Melendez’s multicultural upbringing gives him a unique approach to craft and style. This distinctive quality has given him the opportunity to create award-winning work for a wide variety of clients that include REI, Pepsi, Target, Starbucks, Crayola, SubPop, USPS, Hallmark, and Honda, amongst others.