Washington, D.C. (January 8) – Smart Growth America today announced the four community partners who will lead the Outside In project, a two-year initiative to document and celebrate the underrecognized histories of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities in the suburban South.

Outside In will be anchored by four community-based teams deeply rooted in their regions: 85 Community Development Corporation and We Love Buford Highway in Atlanta, Dallas Asian American Historical Society in Dallas, and Rhodes College’s Urban Studies Department and the Asian and Asian American Studies Program in Memphis. Together with Smart Growth America, these partners will gather oral histories, map culturally significant places, and create community-driven art and engagement activities that illuminate how AAPI communities have transformed the Southern suburban landscape since the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act.

"The strength of this project lies in the deep knowledge and commitment of our community partners," said Marian Liou, Director of Arts & Culture at Smart Growth America and project lead. "Each organization brings deep experience in cultural work, organizing, and storytelling within their communities. They understand intimately how AAPI communities have shaped the built environment in suburban Atlanta, Dallas, and Memphis—and how essential it is to make those stories visible. We're honored to support their leadership in this work."

Atlanta, Dallas, and Memphis represent three distinct trajectories of AAPI suburban growth in the South: Dallas-Fort Worth ranks among the top regions nationally in AAPI population growth and exemplifies rapid, large-scale suburban development; Atlanta demonstrates sustained regional hub growth with highly concentrated settlement corridors; and Memphis illustrates the experiences of smaller, more dispersed AAPI communities. Together, they offer a comprehensive view of how these communities have reshaped the South.

The four partner organizations represent diverse approaches to cultural preservation and community building:

85 Community Development Corporation (Atlanta) serves diverse communities along Interstate 85 in northeast Metro Atlanta, advancing community well-being through culturally specific services and economic development. The organization builds meaningful connections through accessible programming that centers immigrant and AAPI experiences in Gwinnett County, one of the most diverse counties in the Southeast.

We Love Buford Highway (Atlanta) preserves the multicultural identity of Atlanta's Buford Highway corridor, building a diverse coalition to illuminate how immigrants thrive in a changing South. The organization supports immigrant entrepreneurs and small businesses through its business directory and support services, while collecting, archiving, and sharing immigrant experiences. We Love Buford Highway regularly partners with local artists for public art and creative placemaking initiatives that uplift customs, heritage, and cultural norms to better serve and engage the corridor's diverse communities.

Dallas Asian American Historical Society researches, preserves, and amplifies the legacy of Asian Americans in the Dallas area. As both a local archive and statewide cultural anchor, DAAHS offers exhibitions, oral history collection, digitization services, and collaborative programming that reflects the full spectrum of Asian American experiences in Texas.

The Asian and Asian American Studies Program at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, seeks to promote the understanding of histories and cultures in Asia, its complex relations with the world, as well as the diasporic and racial/ethnic/cultural experiences of AAPI communities in the U.S. and in the Mid-South region. The Urban Studies Department enables students to explore and understand urban experiences in their richness and complexity and to appreciate how urban social contexts shape human health.

"Too often, the stories of AAPI communities in places like Dallas are treated as footnotes or left out entirely when the reality is that we have been building, adapting, and claiming space here for decades," said Stephanie Drenka, co-founder and executive director of Dallas Asian American Historical Society. "This project creates the infrastructure to document those histories on our own terms, through our own voices, and to ensure that the places we've transformed are recognized and stewarded for future generations. It's about visibility and power, specifically the power that comes from naming our own stories and shaping how our communities are understood and valued."

Through the Outside In project, each partner organization will:

• Conduct oral histories with community members to document stories of migration, adaptation, and placemaking;
  Identify and map culturally significant sites such as commercial hubs, religious institutions, gathering spaces, and residential neighborhoods;
• Lead community engagement activities, including storytelling events, walking tours, and temporary art installations;
• Participate in a regional learning cohort and national convening to share preservation, place-building, and advocacy strategies and build connections across regions; and
• Contribute to a final report and public presentations that translate program findings into advocacy and policy recommendations.

The project will also establish a cross-sector network linking community organizers, historians, artists, planners, and designers across the South to support long-term cultural stewardship and equitable development strategies led by AAPI communities.

"By recovering and interpreting these layered histories through community-led research and creative practice, we aim to embed AAPI perspectives more fully within the cultural and civic fabric of the places they have shaped," added Liou. "This is just the beginning of a much longer conversation about belonging, memory, and the right to place."

Project activities will begin in early 2026, with initial research, oral history collection, and community engagement activities taking place throughout the year. Public programming and exhibitions will be announced as they are developed in partnership with each community.

For more information about the Outside In project, contact [email protected].