Community Progress CEO to Share at Yale School of the Environment

Dr. Akilah Watkins to share on “Housing in a Pandemic-Driven World” as a part of the Community Development and Equity series

WASHINGTON, D.C. – November 12, 2020 — The Yale School of the Environment has invited, Dr. Akilah Watkins, President and CEO of the Center for Community Progress, to share on its upcoming webinar series on “Community Development and Equity,” November 18th, 2 p.m. EST.

Dr. Watkins will explore topics including how community development’s burden to advance racial equality is intersecting with new cultural challenges created by COVID-19 and historic housing inequities.

“As we move deeper into this social and political era, we know we’re facing with long term challenges,” said Dr. Watkins, who holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Illinois and serves on the boards of numerous community development nonprofits.

“We’re hopeful that opportunities like our talk at Yale will help connect practitioners with new ideas and encourage us all to stay vigilant and engaged in the fight for housing equity.”

The upcoming webinar is part of a multi-session series on community development hosted by the Urban Learning Community Yale School of the Environment. Attendees can log on at https://environment.yale.edu/calendar/#day2020-11-18 and view the full series schedule at https://environment.yale.edu/calendar/.

About Dr. Akilah Watkins

Dr. Akilah Watkins is President and CEO of the Center for Community Progress, America’s nonprofit leader for turning “Vacant Spaces into Vibrant Places.”

A 25-year national thought leader, conference speaker, and nonprofit executive, Dr. Watkins’ work began at the age of 14 when she led efforts to convert a vacant lot and abandoned home into a community center in Roosevelt, New York. Since then, she’s served as an executive leader for non-profits and community development initiatives which include work the Obama administration, NeighborWorks America, the Ford Foundation, and hundreds of municipalities throughout the U.S.

Today, Dr. Watkins’ work as an equity advocate includes leading work in more than 300 communities in 48 states at Community Progress. Collaboratively, Community Progress works to grow strong, equitable communities where vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties are transformed into assets for neighbors and neighborhoods.

Connect with Dr. Watkins online by following @DrAkilahWB on Twitter and LinkedIn.

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About the Center for Community Progress

Founded in 2010, the Center for Community Progress is the national leader for building strong, equitable communities where vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties are transformed into assets for neighbors and neighborhoods. Today, Community Progress has affected change in more than 48 states and seven countries through leadership education and collaborative systems, policy, and practice reforms. Simply, we work to transform “Vacant Spaces into Vibrant Places.”