Think Globally, Innovate Locally

Denial and indifference are two of the main congressional responses to the inequality, economic stagnation, and climate change that threaten America. But progressives can take heart in the creative, often inspiring initiatives flourishing in patches across the country. States and cities are increasingly stepping into the void left by congresisonal obstruction--proposing higher minimum wages, better labor standards, and projects that create jobs and improve communities. “The federal government should have a much more visionary strategy for meeting our current eocnomic challenge,” said Kathleen Mulligan-Hansel, deputy director of the Partnership for Working Families (PWF), which pioneers local strategies. “But it turns out, actually, that cities have a lot of power.”