Dear friend,

Welcome to Frontier, the monthly newsletter from the Future of Property Rights Program at New America. We hope that you're staying safe and healthy. This month, FPR welcomed a new team member, and dove into the housing impacts of COVID-19. Here's what we've been up to:

What We're Doing

FPR Welcomes Fellow Malcom Glenn

FPR is very excited to welcome our new Fellow, Malcom Glenn. Most recently, Malcom was head of global policy for accessibility and underserved communities at Uber Technologies, where he led Uber's global efforts to make the platform more accessible for historically marginalized groups.

Malcom joins FPR with a focus on housing instability in the U.S., and how it intersects with other socioeconomic issues, such as transportation.

Read Malcom's first blog post, on his decision to transition to the housing space, here.

FPR Explores the Impact of COVID-19 on Housing

With the rest of New America, FPR is thinking about how the COVID-19 crisis impacts the issues that we focus on daily.

Yuliya Panfil and Tim Robustelli wrote for CNN Business on why the government needs a long-term plan to address the housing fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.

FPR also held two webinars examining the effects of the pandemic on U.S. housing. In the first, we spoke with Diane Yentel, President and CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, about national strategies to minimize the housing fallout of COVID-19. A week later, we discussed local responses with housing experts from Arizona, Indiana, and North Carolina. Recordings of both webinars are available on our web page.

Hispanics at Risk for Eviction During Economic Slowdowns

Tim Robustelli and Craig J. Richardson, BB&T Distinguished Professor of Economics at Winston-Salem State University, wrote for The Winston-Salem Journal on why Hispanics face the highest risk for eviction in Forsyth County, North Carolina, especially during economic downturns.

What We're Reading

"What your landlord thinks about rent right now" - Curbed

There's been heavy emphasis in the media on widespread job loss and tenants' subsequent inability to pay rent. But what about small-volume landlords who depend on rent checks to pay their own mortgages? Patrick Sisson examines landlords' financial difficulties amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Governments step up surveillance to fight coronavirus" - Thomson Reuters Foundation News 

Umberto Bacchi provides a global overview on how governments are using technology to curb the spread of COVID-19. States from Asia to Europe and South America are using smartphone location data, facial recognition, and drones to fight the virus. We've often advocated that data can be used for good, such as by proving where someone lives. But these tactics bring up difficult conversations around individual privacy, even if governments are simply trying to protect their most vulnerable citizens.

Thoughts on our work or where we're headed? Feel free to reach out to us at FPR@NewAmerica.org.

Until next month, the FPR Team.

About New America

New America is dedicated to renewing the promise of America, bringing us closer to our nation’s highest ideals. We’re a different kind of think tank: one dedicated to public problem solving. Our team of visionary researchers, changemakers, technologists, and storytellers study and seize the opportunities presented by dramatic social and technological change. We search for powerful ideas, wherever they are, and collaborate with civic innovators around the world to develop evidence-based solutions.

The Future of Property Rights Program at New America aims to help solve today’s property rights challenges, both at home and abroad. Through our research, writing, and convening, we strive to connect new constituencies and shed light on underreported issues in the property rights space.

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