This paper argues that for fiscal, efficiency, and equity reasons, the U.S. government should provide targeted benefits instead of universal benefits. It should not just provide cash, but rather invest in human capital and pursue redistribution through targeted spending on education, child care, health insurance, food vouchers and housing assistance programs.

This report aims to articulate the reasons for the growing distrust in American institutions, to re-envision news media that will be fair, truthful and responsible, and to catalyze citizens to participate in civic life.

The purpose of the Aspen Institute Initiative on the Future of Work is to propose a new course – a way to upgrade America’s economic reward structure to keep pace with the shifting realities of the 21st century. As we did in the last century, we must come together to forge a new economic model...

Every day there’s a new story about the rise of on-demand platforms, freelancers, precarious workers, and the “gig economy.” But what do these terms really mean? How is work actually changing? Are we destined to become a nation of “gig workers,” or, as some headlines indicated after the release of the last BLS Contingent Worker...

As inequality has markedly risen over the past few decades, so has economic volatility. Abundant research demonstrates that both individuals and households have faced much greater instability in income since the 1970s – a trend dubbed by Jacob Hacker as the “Great Risk Shift.” Income insecurity can lead to problems and crises like bad credit...