Data Report: SNAP Benefits and Food Insecurity in the Baltimore Area
November 11, 2025
We examine the relationship between SNAP benefit recipients and food insecurity in the Baltimore area using data from the 2024 Baltimore Area Survey.
Baltimore Area Survey
The Baltimore Area Survey (BAS) is an annual, representative survey of Baltimore City and County residents being run by Johns Hopkins 21st Century Cities Initiative. The BAS will help scholars, community members, and policymakers learn more about the Baltimore area’s strengths and challenges from residents.
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Baltimore Social-Environmental Collaborative
The Baltimore Social-Environmental Collaborative (BSEC) is designed to generate the science needed for informed energy investments and extreme weather resilience in Baltimore. In doing so, BSEC contributes to action plans for Baltimore that improve the well-being of residents across the region. Working with businesses, local and state government representatives, and community organizations, BSEC scientists produce the decision-relevant science needed to address local priorities and needs. As data is gathered and findings discovered, the work evolves to answer questions our partners identify.
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Small Business Bank Lending in Baltimore’s Black Butterfly and White L, 2013-2023
August 6, 2025
This study examines community level disparities in lending across Baltimore City in recent years and the racialized geography of banks’ small business lending in Baltimore by looking over a decade of the most recent publicly available data from 2013 to 2023.
Opportunity or Necessity? Perceptions of Entrepreneurship in Baltimore
April 29, 2025
We examine perceptions of entrepreneurship among Baltimore area residents using data from the 2023 Baltimore Area Survey.
Long Term Impacts of the Key Bridge Collapse on Baltimore-area Residents Daily Lives
March 25, 2025
We examine longer-term impacts of the Key Bridge collapse on the daily lives of Baltimore area residents using data from the 2024 Baltimore Area Survey.
Expectations of Future Climate Change Harm and Costs in the Baltimore Area
March 6, 2025
In this research brief, we examine the extent to which Baltimore-area residents are concerned about the future impacts of climate change and how those concerns differ by race, income, age, and geography.
January 23, 2025
The 2024 Baltimore Area Survey asked 163 questions of a statistically representative sample of residents who live in Baltimore City and Baltimore County. The 2024 survey focused on four central topics: Neighborhoods and schools, local government services, food insecurity, and connectivity and mobility
News & Events
Baltimore Area Survey Graduate Student Research Opportunity
November 11, 2025
The 21st Century Cities Initiative is requesting proposals from graduate students who may be interested in fielding questions on the 2026 Baltimore Area Survey.
Maryland governor releases $62 million to cover November SNAP benefits
November 5, 2025
Michael Bader, faculty director of the 21st Century Cities Initiative at Johns Hopkins University, said limited transportation and fewer distribution sites worsen food insecurity in rural areas.
Uncertainty around SNAP funding worries Baltimore recipients and retailers
November 3, 2025
A survey conducted by the 21st Century Cities Initiative found that 28% of those living in the Baltimore region reported experiencing food insecurity in 2024, with white residents being twice as likely to have a convenient grocery store nearby as Black residents.
On the Move: Why the DC region is getting more diverse
October 13, 2025
In D.C. and Maryland specifically, immigration is the only factor preventing a population decline, according to Michael Bader, director of the 21st Century Cities Initiative at Johns Hopkins University.
Baltimore report highlights disparities in small business loans for Black neighborhoods
September 2, 2025
A new report highlights disparities in small business lending in Baltimore's predominantly Black neighborhoods. The report, from researchers at the Johns Hopkins 21st Century Cities Initiative and funded by the Kauffman Foundation, looks at the areas in Baltimore known as the Black Butterfly and the White L — which includes more non-Black neighborhoods.
Baltimore nonprofit tackles rising food insecurity and changes
August 14, 2025
About 28% of residents in the Baltimore region reported experiencing food insecurity last year, a rate that's twice as high as the national average, per an annual survey by Johns Hopkins University’s 21st Century Cities Initiative.