Geographic Equity Toolbox

In Oakland, the City defines equity as fairness. It means that identity—such as race, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation or expression—has no detrimental effect on the distribution of resources, opportunities and outcomes for our City's residents.

The City of Oakland Department of Transportation's (OakDOT) Geographic Equity Toolbox helps City staff prioritize Oakland residents fairly.

The Geographic Equity Toolbox can inform OakDOT's work and guide our investments to advance OakDOT's Equitable Jobs and Housing goals and Citywide equity efforts. Recognizing that not everyone has the same needs, this tool is meant to leverage attention and funding to neighborhoods that may have been historically and currently overlooked by city services and planning processes. This tool is not meant to replace community outreach; it provides a data-driven context for geographic disparities in Oakland. Higher-priority neighborhoods should receive more in-depth community outreach from City staff in order to consider the specific needs of Oaklanders whose demographics are associated with historic and current disparities.

The Geographic Equity Toolbox includes five datasets, each of which provides a data-driven context for how disparities appear geographically in Oakland: Priority Neighborhoods, Race and Ethnicity, Language, Displacement and Gentrification, and Pollution. OakDOT staff are encouraged to use this toolbox to make data-informed decisions about where to prioritize policies, programs, projects, and funding.

The Geographic Equity Toolbox is maintained by the OakDOT Race and Equity Team; follow the link to learn more.