About the Lewis Center

Los Angeles is a dynamic and influential region, home to immense economic power and opportunity. But it is also marked by some of the country’s highest levels of income inequality, driven by skyrocketing housing costs, residential segregation, stagnant wages, and gaps in access to high-quality transportation and education. These challenges are particularly acute for low-income residents and communities, which often face multiple, intersecting barriers to economic opportunity.

At the Ralph & Goldy Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies, our current mission is to advance research on two critical and overlapping challenges: housing affordability and transportation equity. We focus on how these areas intersect and shape the well-being of Los Angeles residents, especially those from marginalized and underserved communities. By understanding and addressing these complex issues, we aim to inform policies and interventions that create more inclusive, sustainable, and equitable communities.

Since 1989, Lewis Center scholars and staff have produced high-quality research, programs and publications designed to inform policymakers, officials, students, and the broader public. Our scholars leverage research grants from government and philanthropic partners to support a diverse and impactful research portfolio. Learn more about the history of the Lewis Center, including past directors’ accomplishments.

Our work is guided by an advisory board of public- and private-sector leaders and conducted by an interdisciplinary team of faculty, research staff, and students at the Luskin School of Public Affairs and across UCLA. Learn more about support for students and the Graduate Student Fellows program to fund students conducting capstone research.

The Center sponsors visiting scholars and collaborates on research and events with UCLA partner centers including: