People-Centered Policymaking

In the search for solutions, a promising reform agenda has emerged around streamlining processes and increasing supply: if we can just increase the overall supply of everything – housing, clean energy, education – then everyone is automatically going to be better off. And not just building more, but building faster by removing the bureaucratic barriers and red tape that slow projects down. 

Yet, while this emphasis on speed and efficiency sounds appealing, our research suggests a crucial blindspot. The real challenge isn't whether to build more—it's ensuring that the increased supply of essential goods and services actually improves life for the maximum number of Californians. To achieve these goals, we need a new model of people-centered policymaking.

In this research series, we’ll describe data that explores the tradeoffs inherent in balancing ‘building fast’ with ‘building fair’ across the care economy, labor and workforce, and the built infrastructure. We’ll offer new research on how communities can provide input while keeping processes moving forward, and shifting influence away from special interests towards the social good. We’ll consider the types of partnerships, policies, and perspectives that can advance these goals. And, finally, we’ll offer a starting point for evidence-based and community-informed policy reforms that enable us to ‘build more’ in ways that allow all Californians to share in the state’s abundant resources.

While Californians urgently need a future with access to the essentials for a quality life, we cannot ignore the questions of who builds this future and who benefits from it. We believe building fast can be coupled with building fair, and our research explores how to make this possible.