Place Matters

Many maps highlighting the challenges facing Philadelphia’s children and communities focus only on risk, often leaving residents and policymakers feeling discouraged or powerless. Place Matters takes a different approach by examining both the risks communities face and the assets that help neighborhoods thrive.

The first iteration of Place Matters explored how neighborhood conditions influence mental health outcomes across Philadelphia. Using statistical and spatial analysis, the project developed one of the city’s first multiple risk factor indices to better understand community-level need and the adequacy of available resources. This work offered important insights for behavioral health systems, public policy, and city planning.

Building on this foundation, we partnered with Azavea to map how neighborhood assets are distributed alongside risks facing children across Philadelphia’s ten Council Districts. To ensure transparency and encourage replication, the project prioritizes publicly available data and openly shares its methods so other cities and regions can adapt the model for their own communities.

To learn more about the data sources and methods used, please click below: