2016 High Road Fellows

Photo: Skye Hart

Skye Hart

AAP '18

Partnership for the Public Good

Baton Rouge, LA

The Partnership for the Public Good is working to build a more just, sustainable and culturally vibrant Greater Buffalo through action-oriented research, policy development and citizen engagement. With over 270 affiliated partners, PPG develops an annual Community Agenda of policy planks, hosts a weekly radio show, and produces publications and other resources to give the nonprofit community and citizens a stronger voice in public policy.

Work Highlights

  • Wrote a report chronicling the process to plan and create PUSH Buffalo’s Green Development Zone on Buffalo’s West Side: an internationally recognized example of how green housing, energy, and food production can rebuild a blighted neighborhood. The report will be a valuable asset in winning state and local policies that would enable green development zones to be replicated throughout the city, region, and state.
  • Represented PPG at a working group focused on passing and implementing inclusionary zoning as part of the City’s new planning code.
  • Updated Buffalo Brief publications that provide a snapshot of information about Buffalo.

In their words

“I’ve learned that a city with a lot of problems can make progress when people work together, which is something I heard many times at many events. Not all of Buffalo’s problems are the results of a not-so-distant past: for example, we learned about the consequences of UB’s Medical Campus. Essentially, I learned that we need to work together to fix the problems from the past and prevent future problems. I learned about my personal career path by learning how the type of organization I would like to work for works. This summer hit the point home that it is hard to do good work without engaging the community.”

Impact

“Skye completed a remarkably ambitious project this summer drafting a major report on the innovative Green Development Zone on Buffalo’s west side. In addition she provided valuable research on inclusionary zoning and other topics. Skye’s work represented an impressive synthesis of community planning expertise, interviewing skills, research, writing and analysis.”

Sam Magavern, Co-Director
Partnership for the Public Good