The Kinder Institute for Urban Research builds better cities and improves lives through data, research, engagement and action.
The Kinder Institute for Urban Research is an interdisciplinary research organization at Rice University in Houston. Under the leadership of Ruth López Turley, the institute’s vision is inclusive prosperity, where everyone has an opportunity contribute to Houston’s success and share in its opportunities.
The institute focuses on the intersecting issues of housing, education, economic mobility, health and population research. Research initiatives are housed under five research centers, including the Houston Education Research Center and the Houston Population Research Center.
The institute works in direct partnership with agencies and organizations that can use its research, data and policy analysis in meaningful ways to implement solutions to critical challenges facing the nation’s fifth-largest metro. Its research agenda is jointly developed with these partners.
Founded in 2010, the Kinder Institute was endowed with a $15 million gift from Houston philanthropists Richard and Nancy Kinder. Today, the institute receives its funding from grants, corporate sponsorships, individual donors and an endowment.
Through research, we can develop solutions that eliminate need and ensure that everyone has an opportunity to build and share in Houston's prosperity, an inclusive prosperity.
— Ruth López Turley, Director, Kinder Institute for Urban Research