Economic Development

Kinder Institute Luncheon 2025

The 2025 Kinder Institute Luncheon will celebrate the institute's 15th anniversary. Findings from the 44th Kinder Houston Area Survey will also be shared.

Q&A: Industry, academia and community have opportunity to close Houston's skills gap

Tens of thousands of Houston-area high school students graduate each year into one of three career pathways: workforce, two-year college degree and four-year college degree.

Beyond Dollars and Cents: Exploring Budgeting, Saving, and Financial Security in the Houston Area

This study explores Harris County residents’ financial security, looking at their budgeting and saving practices, barriers people face to budgeting and saving, and how these practices relate to someone being able to withstand economic shocks.

Coffee & Quality Case Study #2: Alexander Jewish Family Service

The second Coffee & Quality Case Study focused on Alexander Jewish Family Service, a social service nonprofit working with individuals of all ages located in southwest Houston.

Kinder Institute Luncheon 2024

The 2024 Kinder Institute Luncheon will honor Dr. Marc. L. Boom, president and CEO of Houston Methodist. Findings from the 43rd Kinder Houston Area Survey will also be shared.

Opportunity Youth Healthcare Pipeline Study

The Opportunity Youth Healthcare Pipeline initiative seeks to connect youth with career opportunities in the health care sector in the Houston region. This in-depth study explores the operational dynamics, challenges, opportunities and successes of the program.

How can Houstonians keep up — and keep their jobs — in the rapidly evolving AI landscape?

About 6 out of 10 residents expect the rise of artificial intelligence to have a major impact on Houston’s workforce in the near future, according to the 43rd Kinder Houston Area Survey.

After getting the lights back on, what’s Houston’s biggest problem going forward?

Over the course of about four weeks early in 2024, residents across Harris County were asked their opinions on a variety of topics as part of the Kinder Houston Area Survey. That includes a question that has been asked every year since the survey’s founding in 1982: “What would you say is the biggest problem facing people in the Houston area today?”

Kinder Houston Area Survey: 2024 Results

The 43rd annual Kinder Houston Area Survey provides an unparalleled look at current conditions in the region as well as the “Houston of Tomorrow.”

Why thousands of Houston-area households could soon lose a crucial internet subsidy

A program aimed at helping underserved communities afford internet service is expected to end in the coming months, a potential setback for efforts to close the digital divide.

Houston has the jobs, but employers must be willing to take a chance

There should be plenty of jobs available in the Greater Houston region this year, but is the area producing enough work-ready people to fill them?

Is buying a home easier or harder in Houston? Here’s how it compares to other Texas metros

By many accounts, the city of Houston has long been considered an affordable place to buy a home. But how well does it stack up against its peers in Texas? One way to look at this is to compare housing costs relative to income.

Kinder Institute Luncheon 2023

The annual luncheon brings together hundreds of business, nonprofit and community leaders to learn about the leading issues facing our community and country.

How a former landfill could help fight floods and reimagine a swath of southwest Houston

A proposal to transform a former landfill in southwest Houston into a mixed-use development with a flood control component recently caught the attention of statewide planners who recognized it for its contributions to resilience.

Houston’s restaurants, not oil and gas, offer a strong signal of the city’s economic recovery

Following a tumultuous span of more than two years since the pandemic’s onset in Houston, employment has shown strong signs of recovery, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. In fact, it was on track to grow jobs back to pre-pandemic projections by the end of 2022.