Greenspace is an important component of many cities, serving to improve quality of life. They provide significant physical and mental health benefits as well as help minimize the impact of climate change. Join us April 20, 9-11 a.m., for this virtual presentation as we demonstrate a new tool developed for SAVI, centered around greenspace in Marion County. This tool will illustrate the areas which would benefit the most from targeted greenspace development. We will discuss how we designed this tool, how to use it, and what we can learn from it moving forward to help improve the communities we live in.

SAVI is helping Indianapolis address inequities by measuring the change people want to see. The team created a draft report card to measure the equity gaps in our community with guidance from an Equity Advisory Committee. We are seeking your input as we finalize the report card to be launched in late spring. Read our draft version of the report card measuring the desired outcomes of a racially just and equitable Indianapolis and give us your input in the survey.

Many older adults in Central Indiana rely on public transit to maintain their independence. However, transit options are often not well-known nor easily accessible. This State of Aging in Central Indiana Report (SoAR) research brief addresses important aspects of public transit accessibility for older adults in Central Indiana.

In 2020, there were an estimated 10,105 victims of domestic violence (one percent of the population) and 5,880 perpetrators reported in the legal system. Victims’ gender is predominantly recorded as female (71 percent in 2020), with the largest group aged 25-29. Victims of male gender make up a higher proportion in 2020 (23 percent) than in 2016 (17 percent). Perpetrators’ gender is predominantly reported as male (81 percent in 2020), with the largest group aged 30-34. Forty-five percent of victims are Black and 40 percent are white. Domestic violence victims are disproportionately Black. Comparatively, 27 percent of the population is Black and 51 percent is white.

We’ve started a new SAVI project, How Is Indianapolis Doing?, which will provide monthly updates on how the Indianapolis metro area is recovering and emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic impacted nearly every aspect of life in American cities for the past two years and Indianapolis was no exception. This project will feature regularly updated visualizations on some of the most pressing and challenging issues in our community.

Older adults are the fastest growing demographic in Central Indiana, as approximately 24,000 adults turn 55 and 22,000 turn 60 each year.1 By the year 2030, one in every five Hoosiers will be over the age of 65.2 To enhance the ability of older adults to live and thrive in Central Indiana, it is important to understand the population trends, notable changes, and basic needs of this growing demographic.

The Polis Center’s expertise in neighborhood level community information differentiates it, bringing a holistic perspective to best identify improvements. It looks beyond the physical infrastructure elements of mitigation by bearing in mind a region’s vulnerable populations, social weaknesses and services, social determinants of health, and more when preparing a community’s MHMP.

It allows users to upload a list of address to be mapped in SAVI along with socioeconomic data.

Polis continues to work on the technical development of the digital Encyclopedia of Indianapolis project in partnership with the Indianapolis Public Library. The Encyclopedia launched a new interactive feature on Redlining, as well as a Religion Timeline. We continue to work on the African American Timeline about accomplishments and challenges of Indianapolis Black population over the years. In addition, we are working on an exhibitions gallery with plans to present two exhibitions in June 2023: ‘The Hoosier Group: Impressions of Indianapolis’ and ‘Murals for Social Justice.’ In the past year, more than 118,000 users have accessed the site to view more than a quarter-million pages (users are from US, Canada, UK, Australia, China).