This year, SPUR is celebrating staff members — a.k.a. “Spurritos”— who have served the organization for 10 years or more. This month we profile Food and Agriculture Policy Director Eli Zigas, who launched this policy area at SPUR in 2011 and today continues to lead our work to create healthy, just and sustainable food systems and put an end to food insecurity.

During the pandemic, federal stimulus funds sent as cash transfers gave many people the money they needed to survive. Organizations across the country started cash transfer programs to help those who needed it most. These bold moves helped bring guaranteed income to the forefront of a national conversation on how best to alleviate poverty and tackle growing income inequality. SPUR recently participated in an effort to begin turning San Francisco’s guaranteed income pilot programs into permanent policies.

If Governor Newsom and the state legislature act now, they can help Californians spend less on gas by delivering transportation options that are better for the environment. Our op-ed with Capitol Weekly proposes that they should support $2 billion for the Active Transportation Program this June alongside increased investments in transit.

The Bay Area’s plan for stabilizing and reimagining public transit in the wake of COVID-19 calls for a connected network plan, a strategic vision to guide planning and investment. In this article, we’ll look at what a network plan is, why it’s important to do one and how it differs from other kinds of transportation plans. We’ll also recommend a scope for the Bay Area’s connected network plan.