The 2000s were less a coherent era than a series of dramatically different economic epochs. Moreover, it is difficult to know whether, or how long, several of the recession-induced trends we identify in this report—slowed migration, increased enrollment in higher education, declining median wages and incomes, rising levels of poverty—might persist into the coming decade.
This report shows that our nation now faces a series of “new realities” about who we are, where and with whom we live, and how we provide for our own welfare, as well as that of our families and communities:
- Growth and Outward Expansion
- Population Diversification
- Aging of the Population
- Uneven Higher Educational Attainment
- Income Polarization
The report also identifies distinct types of metropolitan areas. What differentiates them are simple metrics of population growth, population diversity, and educational attainment, as compared to national averages. Grouped into seven categories, the particular issues facing the nation’s 100 largest metro areas become clearer, as do the places to which individual metro areas might look for common solutions:
- Diverse Giant
- Skilled Anchor
- Next Frontier
- New Heartland
- Industrial Core
- Border Growth
- Mid-Sized Magnet
These population distinctions dictate different priorities for metropolitan leaders seeking to forge a prosperous future for their communities.
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