Center for Demographics and Policy
»Center for Demographics and Policy
"Demographics is destiny" has become somewhat of an overused phrase, but that does not reduce the critical importance of population trends to virtually every aspect of economic, social, and political life. Concern over demographic trends has been heightened in recent years by several international trends — notably rapid aging, reduced fertility, and large-scale migration across borders. On the national level, shifts in attitude, generation, and ethnicity have proven decisive in both the political realm and in the economic fortunes of regions and states.
The Center focuses on research and analysis of global, national and regional demographic trends and explores policies that might produce favorable demographic results over time. In addition, it involves Chapman students in demographic research under the supervision of the Center’s senior staff. Students work with the Center’s director and engage in research that will serve them well as they look to develop their careers in business, the social sciences, and the arts. They also have access to our advisory board, which includes distinguished Chapman faculty and major demographic scholars from across the country and the world.
Advisory Board
Howard Ahmanson, Jr.
Howard Fieldstad Ahmanson, Jr. is a philanthropist and writer whose public activities
focus on deepening awareness and fostering better policy regarding affordable housing,
land use, and eminent domain, as well as life issues, particularly the beginning and
ending of human life. A regular attender at the Congress on New Urbanism, Ahmanson
is proud to have sponsored the local government conference series at Chapman University
in Orange, California. View Full Bio
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Cullum Clark
J.H. Cullum Clark is the director of the Bush Institute-SMU Economic Growth Initiative
and an adjunct professor of economics at SMU. Within the Economic Growth Initiative,
he leads the Bush Institute’s work on domestic economic policy and economic growth.
Before joining the Bush Institute and SMU, Clark worked in the investment industry
for 25 years. He served as an equity analyst and portfolio manager at Brown Brothers
Harriman & Co. (1993-96), as a portfolio manager at Warburg Pincus Asset Management
(1996-2000), as President and Chief Investment Officer of Cimarron Global Investors,
a Dallas-based hedge fund firm (2000-02), and as President of Prothro Clark Company,
a Dallas family investment office (2002-18). Before entering the investment industry,
he served for one year on the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence staff.
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Wendell Cox
Wendell Cox is the principal of Demographia.com (St. Louis, MO-IL). He is a Senior
Fellow at the Center for Opportunity Urbanism in Houston and a Senior Fellow for Municipal
Policy and Housing Affordability at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy in Winnipeg.
He was a visiting professor at the Paris Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers.
He has presented guest lectures on urban policy and transport at the University of
Paris (the Sorbonne), Tonji University (Shanghai), Cairo University, the University
of Sydney, and the University of Toronto. He served as vice-president of CODATU, a
Lyon, France-based organization dedicated to improving mobility in developing world
urban areas. He is co-author of the "Demographia International Housing Affordability
Survey", author of "Demographia World Urban Areas", and has published three editions
of "Demographia Central Business Districts". Wendell Cox designed the City Sector
Model, which permits more detailed analysis of the urban form in metropolitan areas
at a small area level, instead of by municipal jurisdiction.
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Jennifer L. Hernandez
Jennifer Hernandez has practiced land use and environmental law for over 30 years
and leads Holland & Knight's West Coast Land Use and Environmental Group. She has
written three books and more than 50 articles on environmental and land use topics.
She regularly teaches land use, environmental, and climate law in law and business
schools, colleges, and seminars. During his tenure as mayor of San Francisco, Willie
Brown named October 9, 2002, "Jennifer Hernandez Day" in San Francisco in honor of
her work as a "warrior on the Brownfields" to restore and redevelop former industrial
lands. Ms. Hernandez is the longest-serving minority board member (23 years) of the
California League of Conservation Voters, was appointed by President Clinton to serve
as a trustee for the Presidio National Park in San Francisco, and serves on the board
of directors for California Forward and Sustainable Conservation. View Full Bio
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Karla López del Río
Karla López del Río is a community development executive committed to supporting low-
and moderate-income families build wealth and thriving communities. Karla is the Principal
at Connexions Consulting. Her work fosters public-private-grassroots partnerships
resulting in innovative community-led projects, affordable housing solutions, homeownership
opportunities, and small business development across Southern California. Karla contributes
to the field with her insight as a first-generation immigrant, with a background in
real estate and experience in social enterprise management.
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Soledad Ursúa
Soledad Ursúa is the Principal Researcher for this project. Soledad is a finance professional
and Principal at Orinoco Equities. She is an elected board member of the Venice Neighborhood
Council in the Los Angeles area. She addresses social policy questions such as crime,
homelessness, and drug addiction. She has written for many publications, including
City Journal, Los Angeles Times, American Mind, and the California Globe. She holds
a B.A. from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and an M.S. from The New
School for Management and Urban Policy.
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Ali Modarres
Ali Modarres is the Director of Urban Studies and the Assistant Chancellor for Community
Engagement at the University of Washington Tacoma. Dr. Modarres serves on several
governing and advisory boards of academic associations, nonprofits, and policy centers,
including the Economic Roundtable (Los Angeles), the Urban Affairs Association, the
South Sound Regional Leadership Council of Forterra, and the Greater Tacoma Community
Foundation.
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Pete Saunders
Pete is a writer and researcher focusing on urbanism and public policy. He is a practicing
urban planner with over twenty years’ experience in planning, economic development,
and community development, with stops in the public, private, and non-profit sectors.
He is the principal for PDS Consulting, an urban planning consulting and research
firm. Pete has been the editor/publisher of the Corner Side Yard, an urbanist blog,
since 2012. His principal research areas include: race and public policy; urban migration
dynamics; global city demographics; economic and social inequality; gentrification;
Rust Belt metro analysis; and Midwest regional analysis.
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Joel Farkas
Joel founded Fruition Communities, a Denver-based company specializing in real estate,
energy, infrastructure, and water resource development. With over 38 years of experience,
he has led the acquisition and development of more than 48,500 residential home sites,
over a million square feet of retail space, and extensive water infrastructure projects
across the southwestern U.S. In addition to conventional real estate ventures, Farkas
has played a key role in addressing critical water needs by partnering with municipalities
and energy companies to deliver sustainable water solutions. His work reflects a commitment
to community innovation and infrastructure resilience, particularly in areas where
government resources are limited. Joel Farkas is a proud supporter and contributor
to the Center for Demographics and Policy’s initiatives.
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Marshall Toplansky
Marshall Toplansky, MBA, serves as a research fellow at the C. Larry Hoag Center for
Real Estate and the Center for Demographics and Policy. He is a Clinical Assistant
Professor of Management Science at the Argyros School of Business and Economics.
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Thomas Tseng
Thomas Tseng is Principal of Sengo Insights, LLC, a Los Angeles-based market research
agency with global capabilities extending from the U.S. to the Asia Pacific (China,
Japan, Taiwan). With over 20 years of industry experience, Thomas is a seasoned marketing
research professional and has amassed a strong, proven track record of success in
delivering strategic, actionable consumer insights for a diverse range of clients
spanning Fortune 500 clients, non-profit organizations, academia, and government agencies.
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Morley Winograd
Morley Winograd is an author and speaker who delivers candid information and insights on engaging millennials. His predictions and often pithy analyses have appeared in (or on) The New York Times, The Today Show, CNN, USA Today, PBS NewsHour, NPR, Barron's, Forbes, Reuters, and Unicision. He is the co-author, with Michael D. Hais, of three highly acclaimed books, "Millennial Majority" and "Millennial Makeover". They published their fourth book with Doug Ross earlier this year, "Healing American Democracy". He is also a Senior Fellow at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School's Center on Communication Leadership and Policy.
The Center for Demographics and Policy