Equity and Inequality
November 6, 2014
Written by Northeastern University – Seattle’s Dean and CEO, Tayloe Washburn
How do we provide equity and opportunity for all citizens in our region? The rapid expansion in the Seattle region’s economy has brought jobs and prosperity for many, but the benefits have been unevenly distributed, both nationally and in this region. These graphs help spell out the problem:
Many would agree it is important to link our regional prosperity and regional equity together. All of us want to live in a region which values inclusion, and provides real opportunities for all citizens to receive education, good health care, a roof over their heads, meals on the table, and a good job. Research shows that inequality in these areas leads to social tensions, political instability, higher uncertainty and lower investment, and thus lower economic growth. Articles have noted that the relatively slow economic recovery from the Great Recession is due in part to the fact that the wages of middle class workers have increased far less than higher wage workers, and thus they are buying far fewer cars, homes and consumer goods. Even more worrisome, both trade policies and the galloping growth of technology and computers in all lines of work are steadily decreasing the need for middle class jobs.
Washington State and the Puget Sound region have a history of progressive public and private leadership in many areas, most recently in affordable housing, Pre-K education, and healthcare services for low-income citizens. Yet, while many elements of our population have good jobs, a great education, health care, and housing, significant portions of our community are being left behind. Race and location can frequently prevent many of our citizens from reaching their full potential. While many leaders in government, business, labor, and the non-profit sector are working hard to decrease income inequality and build equity and opportunity for all citizens, these issues do not get much visibility, resulting in many missed opportunities to remove barriers and improve the prospects of low and middle-income citizens.
Northeastern University – Seattle is working with members of our community to move our region forward to broad equity and opportunity. On December 3rd this year, we will host an event on our Seattle campus from 11:30 to 1:30 PM focused on Income Inequality and three actions our region can take now to narrow the gap. Leading up to that event, we want to promote a regional conversation to help identify and develop these three initiatives. We want to focus on what specific steps local governments can take. Take a look, for example, at King County’s great brochure on its efforts. We will identify voluntary actions businesses in our community can take to materially benefit their employees, and the workers of the businesses they may sub-contract with. We want to explore how we can get our community more focused on the challenges in this area, and how we as a community can make building equity and opportunity for all citizens a top regional value and priority. Give some thought to the determinants of equity, illustrated below from King County’s brochure, and what your organization or business can do to help make this region known not just for its innovation and prosperity, but its inclusiveness and opportunities available for all citizens to succeed. I welcome your thoughts and comments on this blog.
