SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA – The Community Foundation San Luis Obispo County has launched the Community Reports & Data Center, the first comprehensive online database dedicated to raising public awareness about the needs, trends, and emerging issues in San Luis Obispo County. With the launch of this online database, residents, organizations, and businesses now have an up-to-date digital resource at their fingertips, empowering the community to make timely, informed philanthropic decisions.
“Through our collective efforts and in collaboration with SLO County nonprofits, we found ourselves uniquely poised to enhance the accessibility and frequency of vital data for community use,” says Heidi McPherson, CEO of The Community Foundation. “It was important for us to put our community’s most important data in one easy-to-access place that could be edited in real-time.”
The Community Reports & Data Center brings together the needs assessments related to SLO County into one accessible platform, empowering individuals to gain a deeper understanding of the community’s needs and work collaboratively towards effective solutions. Reports and data are categorized by housing and homelessness, equity, childcare and education, health and human services, land and nature, economic conditions, arts and culture, and specific populations.
Within the platform, users can access key statistics that illuminate the pressing needs of the community, some of which include:
- The cost of childcare on average is over a third of annual wages for low-income families.
- 1 in 6 SLO County residents face hunger and lack of food access and 60% of folks served by the Food Bank are children or seniors.
- An alarming trend of chronic sadness & depression increased by 41% in young girls.
- By year 2030, 29% of SLO County’s population will be over 60 years old, a 61% increase from 2010.
“In today’s data-driven world, knowledge should be accessible to everyone. The online Data Center has been thoughtfully designed to empower individuals and organizations with ease of use and intuitive navigation,” highlights Biz Steinberg, Chief Executive Officer of CAPSLO. “Data-driven donations are what keep the impact moving in our community, and this platform will further enhance our ability to make informed decisions and address the real needs effectively.”
Before the Community Reports and Data Center launched, ACTION for Health Communities was a collaborative of individual agencies, public and private organizations committed to producing “Vital Signs” reports which collected information on quality of life indicators. In 2021, the collaborative decided to sunset the production of the report due to the wealth of reports available in our region, which prompted the impetus for the creation of an online database.
“For the past two decades, ACTION for Healthy Communities has been at the forefront of providing valuable insights into the well-being of San Luis Obispo County. The launch of the Community Reports & Data Center marks an exciting new chapter in our journey,” says Jason Wells, Chair of Action for Healthy Communities and Associate Director of First 5 San Luis Obispo County, a local partner who played a pivotal role in the development of the data center.
Thank you to the community members, leaders, nonprofit partners, and city and county officials who helped make this project possible: Cal Poly, Diversity Coalition San Luis Obispo County, County of San Luis Obispo, Dignity Health, Transitions Mental-Health Association, KCBX, First 5, and Wilshire Hospice.
“This platform represents more than data, it embodies our shared journey, our challenges, and our aspirations,” says McPherson. “It stands as a testament of our commitment to fostering a brighter future for every member of our community.”
To explore the Community Reports & Data Center and gain valuable insights into our community, please visit cfsloco.org/research/. To connect directly with The Community Foundation about specific initiatives and organizations addressing community needs, email info@cfsloco.org.
