
How Behavioral Science is Helping to Advance Systemic Change in Cities and in the Justice System


How Behavioral Science is Helping to Advance Systemic Change in Cities and in the Justice System
Program
Erika and Alexander will each share examples of how their teams are doing this work to advance incremental change: re-framing critical questions; shifting long-held default procedures and assumptions; normalizing the development and use of a racial equity lexicon; engaging a variety of stakeholders in characterizing racial inequities that exist in each system; developing and prototyping solutions to those challenges; and more. During the conversation, our moderator will also guide both practitioners through an examination of their work through the lens of behavioral economics, an evolving and important field of practice that supports the advancement of change by 1) gaining insights about human behavior; 2) using those insights to develop a change strategy; and 3) implementing those strategies to change behaviors among actors in a system.
Over the past year, these and other change initiatives were studied as part of the Meeting of the Minds’ Behavior Change Project. The project was designed to glean important lessons and insights for practitioners working across a variety of disciplines to advance social change. Tune in to hear these bold and courageous practitioners give voice to the day-to-day work and challenges of driving systems-level change, and come away with tangible steps you can take to advance racial equity in your own sector.
Resources

Alexander Shermansong's Slides

Kate O'Brien's Slides
Presenters

Erika Anthony
Executive Director, Ohio Transformation Fund

Alexander Shermansong
CEO, Civic Consulting USA
Guest Moderator

Kate O'Brien
Senior Writer, Meeting of the Minds
Kate O’Brien writes the Global Mobility Research article series and Behavior Change article series for Meeting of the Minds.
When not interviewing and writing about the work of mobility researchers and behavior change agents around the world, Kate leads a collaborative consulting practice focused on coaching, capacity building, and facilitation for teams navigating and driving change.
Kate holds a BA in Human Development and Social Relations from Kalamazoo College, and an MA in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University. She lives and works in Portland, Maine.