headshot of Samantha Fu
Samantha Fu
SHE/HER/HERS
Senior Policy Associate
Research to Action Lab

Samantha Fu is a senior policy associate in the Research to Action Lab at the Urban Institute, where she ensures that policymakers, practitioners, and advocates can leverage data and evidence to dismantle systemic barriers and create conditions that allow all communities to thrive. She leads and collaborates on projects related to housing, economic, and environmental justice, with a particular focus on how community ownership and control can contribute to more equitable, sustainable, and democratic societies.

Fu joined Urban from the California Policy Lab, where she conducted quantitative research in policy areas ranging from labor and employment to higher education and the social safety net. Before that, she worked in economic consulting at Cornerstone Research, on the analytics team for the 2016 Clinton campaign, and as a Data Science for Social Good Fellow at the University of Chicago's Center for Data Science and Public Policy. She holds a bachelor’s degree from McGill University and a master’s degree in public administration from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Research Areas
Housing
Economic mobility and inequality
Climate change, disasters, and community resilience
Race and equity
Social safety net
Tags
Community and economic development
Climate impacts and community resilience
Environmental justice
Equitable development
Housing affordability
Housing stability
Planning for climate change
Shared equity housing
Racial inequities in neighborhoods and community development