Future Preparedness Index
America’s political leaders frequently invoke society’s obligations to its younger citizens as justification for cutting federal spending, and seeking a strictly balanced budget. Millennials therefore have an obligation to clearly state our needs and priorities as they relate to the world that we, and our children, stand to inherit. We have a more robust vision of what is required to meet America’s long-term challenges, which goes well beyond, but nevertheless includes, sustainable fiscal policy. The Future Preparedness Index (FPI) provides a structure for measuring how well new and proposed policy will help America meet the many sustainability challenges it faces.
Young people can reframe the discussion of America’s future by using the FPI indicators to inform and inspire their policy ideas, and to evaluate proposed legislation for its long-term implications. The FPI indicators, taken together, constitute a robust vision of what an America prepared for the challenges of the twenty-first century will look like. Youth legislation analysts can use the indicators to guide their analysis and production of new state and federal policy. Using the 2025 or 2040 goal as a guidepost, they can frame a policy proposal or piece of legislation based on how well it moves America toward that long-term goal.