Pathways for Affordable Housing Initiatives: A Community-Led Scenario Planning Toolkit

This toolkit is the product of a joint initiative involving professionals and organizations from the Tijuana–San Diego border area to address the challenges of sustainable urban development and affordable housing in the region. The toolkit is designed to guide stakeholders through an XSP process that addresses affordable housing challenges in underserved communities. It equips community leaders, policymakers, and residents with essential tools and frameworks to envision and strategize solutions that affect housing. Through collaborative workshops and scenario planning, participants explore the complexities of housing affordability, leveraging diverse perspectives to foster innovative and sustainable solutions.  

The toolkit provides a structured one-day workshop to identify, analyze, and address the specific needs of a community, ensuring that all voices are heard and integrated into various future scenarios, identifying potential challenges and opportunities in affordable housing, and thereby empowering stakeholders to make informed decisions and advocate for sustainable community development. 

In 2023, the Consortium for Scenario Planning supported four exploratory scenario planning (XSP) projects that address housing affordability challenges in communities from San Diego to Pittsburgh. The projects resulted in the development of toolkits that demonstrate how the scenario planning process was adapted in each of the four communities.  The other toolkits can be accessed below:

Housing Choices Game: A Scenario Planning Activity Toolkit

Triboro EcoHousing Futures: Scenario Planning for Housing Affordability and Resilience

Shifting Perspectives About Housing in Rural Communities: Scenario Planning for Housing Development