The Chicago region is experiencing demographic shifts that have led to recent small population declines, which hold significant implications for the future. Domestic migration, which long occurred both within the region as well as to and from other parts of…
ON TO 2050 calls on the Chicago region to take bold steps toward a well-integrated, multimodal transportation system that seamlessly moves people and goods. A reliable and accessible transit system plays a central role in realizing that goal. Metropolitan Chicago’s…
Over the past several decades, broad macroeconomic trends reshaped the composition of the U.S. labor market, including a growing demand for services, technological advancements, and a diversifying workforce. These structural shifts, combined with the 2007-09 recession, resulted in a greater…
Middle skill job opportunities have become harder to find. Between 1980 and 2016, the U.S. labor market exhibited patterns of what economist have termed ‘polarization’ with stronger demand for workers on both the low and high ends of the skill…
A growing body of research sheds light on how the nature of work is changing. The skills that workers need to access and retain quality jobs are changing. Job creation is increasingly concentrated in occupations on the high and low…
Population growth is both a strong indicator and a driver of economic performance, whereas population loss can point to insufficient economic opportunity or quality of life. Residents often move for employment, but also because of family connections, life stage, or…
Inclusive economic growth is key to promoting the region’s competitiveness and increasing prosperity for all residents. New research illustrates a relationship between economic inequality and regional economic prosperity. Decreasing economic inequality produces longer and stronger periods of regional economic growth….
The Chicago region experiences significant and repeated damages from flooding. Between 2007 and 2014, $2.319 billion in damages were paid out from public and private sources statewide, according to a 2015 Illinois Department of Natural Resources report that reviewed the…
Understanding demographic trends is crucial to developing plans and policies related to the region’s land use, economic development, housing, and transportation systems. Socioeconomic shifts affect important economic factors including labor supply, job distribution, and labor market polarization. By planning effectively…
Population growth is both a condition and a consequence of economic prosperity. Thus, the Chicago region’s residents are both the primary drivers of economic growth — and, in recent years, an indicator of slowing economic progress. The human capital embodied…