Executive Summary

Purpose Built Communities began over ten years ago as an organization, but our philosophy – that every neighborhood should have the resources and amenities it needs to be worthy of the people who live there – is more than twenty-five years in the making. We formed to bring our holistic model for impact to neighborhoods around the country experiencing historic and chronic disinvestment facilitated by federal, state, and local-level policies.

Where We Thrive navigates through the why, how, and what of our work. Each resource explores the meaning behind people, place, and race in the context of neighborhood revitalization and what is required of each of us to move it forward in a way that ensures all children, families, and the neighborhoods they live in can thrive.

From years of research and refinement, our approach to neighborhood revitalization identifies five clear lessons:

1. Racial equity must be a strategic priority and a core value.
2. Resident voice and power must guide the work.
3. A strong community quarterback organization is essential for success.
4. Wealth building is fundamental to economic vitality.
5. What we say and how we present this work is a moral imperative.

Where We Thrive is as much a story about collaboration and community building as the work itself.

Purpose Built Communities and the Purpose Built Network produced this extensive body of work alongside vital strategic partners, including the FrameWorks Institute. Support for the narrative research is provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

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Additional Resources

Our work expands and evolves as we learn more and work with others who share our belief that neighborhoods matter, as do the people who live there.

• Prosperity In Place: Focused Community Strategies Case Study
• Communicating about Intergenerational Urban Poverty and Race in America: Challenges, Opportunities, and Emerging Recommendations
• Where We Thrive – Methods and Data
• POVERTY AND PLACE: A Review of the Science and Research That Have Impacted Our Work
• America Thrives When Neighborhoods Thrive
• Segregated By Design
• Seven key takeaways from Chetty’s new research on friendship and economic mobility
• These maps from Raj Chetty show that where children grow up has a major impact on their lifetime earnings
• Transforming East Lake: A Case Study by America’s Promise Alliance