UNC Charlotte Urban Institute staff are experienced speakers and presenters on a variety of topics. If you’d like a speaker for your event, please feel free to contact the speakers listed, or contact the institute’s main offices at 704-687-1210 or unccurbaninstitute@uncc.edu.
Speakers
Jeff Michael, Director
Expertise:
- Overview of the Charlotte Region (past and present)
- Land use planning
- Land conservation
- Leadership challenges for a changing region
Dr. Lori Thomas, Director of Research & Faculty Engagement / Institute for Social Capital
Expertise:
- Housing instability
- Chronic homelessness
- Mixed Methods research
- Evaluation
- Participatory research models
Ely Portillo, Associate Director of Outreach & Strategic Partnerships
Expertise:
- Regional growth and development
- Planning and land use
- Changes in Charlotte
Justin Lane, Associate Director of the Institute for Social Capital
Expertise:
- Housing
- Education
- Integrated data systems
Bridget Anderson, Social Research Specialist
Expertise:
- Homelessness
- Public Health
- Social Capital
Angelique Gaines, Social Research Specialist
Expertise:
- Housing, homelessness
- Education
- Community Development
- Economic mobility
Sydney Idzikowski, Data and Research Coordinator
Expertise:
- Racial Wealth Gap
- Integrated Data Systems
- Education
- Health
Dr. Bill McCoy, Emeritus Faculty
Expertise:
- Age-Friendly community
- Housing issues for older adults
- Community design for older adults
- Senior villages as an Aging in Place strategy
Katie Zager, Social Research Specialist
Expertise:
- Quality of Life Explorer
- GIS coding/mapping
- Public Health
