The knowledge economy. To prosper in today’s high-tech, global economy, Houston will need to make significant investments in new centers of industry and innovation, to develop the emerging technologies in such areas as wind and solar energy, in data analysis and life sciences. Above all, the city will need to drastically improve its public schools and nurture a far more educated workforce, and it will need to find effective ways to reduce the deepening inequalities that have resulted from the combined effects of worldwide competition, declining unionization, advances in computers and robotics, and concentrated political power. The surveys have shown that area residents are much more prepared today than in past years to support government initiatives to reduce the disparities in opportunities and to significantly increase our investments in the public schools, from birth to college, from cradle to career.

The demographic transformation. If this region is to flourish in the years ahead, it will need to evolve into a much more united, equitable, and inclusive multiethnic society, one with real equality of opportunity for all area residents in all communities, positioned to capitalize fully on its remarkable ethnic and cultural diversity. Here, too, the surveys have shown that area residents, increasingly over the years, are embracing Houston’s diversity and feeling more at home in a world of thriving friendships across ethnic populations, religious groups, and sexual orientations. And they are developing a deeper sense of community solidarity and mutual trust.

Quality-of-place attributes. To attract the talent that will grow its economy, the city will need to evolve into a more aesthetically and environmentally appealing urban destination. It will need to continue making major improvements in its parks and bayous, its mobility and transit systems, its air and water quality, its venues for sports and the arts, and its resilience to severe storms and rising sea levels. The surveys have shown how much area residents value these quality-of-life amenities and recognize the critical need to mitigate future storms. In addition, as their life circumstances and comfort levels evolve, many more Houstonians are now seeking homes in the walkable, transit-oriented neighborhoods that are sprinkled throughout this traditionally automobile-dependent, sprawling metropolis.