The DiversityData project identifies metropolitan area indicators of diversity, opportunity, quality of life and health for various racial and ethnic population groups. This Website is now available to a wide variety of potential users interested in describing, profiling and ranking U.S. metros in terms of quality of life. The indicators provide a scorecard on diversity and opportunity, and allow researchers, policymakers and community advocates to compare metro areas and to help them advocate for policy action and social change.

The choice of indicators was grounded in recent work on urban inequality and health inequality, which points to the significance of racial/ethnic disparities in health, educational, employment and housing opportunities across metro areas.

The project challenges urban researchers, policymakers and activists to define quality of life and health broadly -- to include opportunities for good schools, housing, jobs, wages, health and social services, and safe neighborhoods -- to compare achievement across metros, and to make continuous changes to keep metropolitan life healthy for all populations. Public policies may enhance or harm the well-being of diverse populations. Important policy areas include neighborhood integration, residential mobility, anti-discrimination in housing, urban renewal, school quality and economic opportunities.

This research and data analysis are an ongoing project of the Harvard School of Public Health (Department of Society, Human Development, and Health.) The Center for the Advancement of Health is facilitating dissemination and policy advocacy activities. The project was supported by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies.

The design and implementation of this site is by Velir Studios, a Boston-based web design and development firm specializing in large, data-driven reporting systems.