Economic Mobility
What is Economic Mobility?
Economic mobility addresses systems to improve unfair conditions that influence whether individuals, families, and communities can prosper over time and across generations. It means access to opportunities and resources needed for basic needs, financial security, and a dignified, high quality of life–regardless of race, place, gender, or ability.
Quick Links
In-Person Workshop
Levers of Economic Mobility Index (LEMI) and What it Means for Our Community
July 23, 2026 | 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. | Permitting and Development Center (PDC) Room 1405
Join Austin Equity and Inclusion and our partners at Resilient Cities Catalyst for a hands‑on workshop where community members explore the LEMI tool in an easy, approachable way. For more than a decade, eight Quality of Life Studies have helped the City and partners understand how thousands of residents experience key areas that impact economic mobility.
During this workshop, participants will:
Learn about Austin’s Economic Mobility work and the community research behind it
Explore the LEMI and see how neighborhood-level data connects to what community members have been sharing over time
Discuss community‑focused examples that show where disparities show up
Share what they see, know, and experience in their neighborhoods
Work together to co‑create ideas that can help close gaps and support more equitable outcomes across Austin
This workshop is open to all community members and is especially designed for people who may be new to data tools or simply curious about how data and addressing structural barriers can advance economic mobility in their neighborhood.
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Virtual Webinar
LEMI 101: Understanding and Using the City of Austin's Levers of Economic Mobility Index
Wednesday, July 29, 2026 | 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. | On Zoom
This webinar provides a detailed introduction to the City’s new place‑based mapping tool designed to help users explore the factors that influence economic mobility across Austin communities. Austin Equity and Inclusion, together with data scientists at Every Texan, will guide participants through the tool’s features and walk through how to navigate the interactive StoryMap and Index. The session will cover how to interpret neighborhood-level data and example use cases to close gaps in our community.
Participants will learn how the tool can deepen their understanding of neighborhood conditions and structural barriers and support community-guided planning,program development, and inform approaches that drive equitable outcomes across Austin.
This session is open to all community members and stakeholders. It may be particularly relevant for:
Community organizations
Neighborhood associations
Healthcare facilities and service providers
Philanthropic organizations
Financial institutions
Local businesses
Education partners
Nonprofit partners
Advocacy groups
Faith‑based organizations
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The Levers of Economic Mobility Framework
In every community, there are conditions–some visible, others deeply embedded–that shape how people live, work, and move through the world. The Economic Mobility framework is our effort to better understand those conditions across Austin’s neighborhoods and take deliberate steps to address them. This builds on ongoing efforts to address disparities by measuring impact and bringing a human lens to data.
The Austin Levers of Economic Mobility Index (LEMI)
Mapping Conditions. Mobilizing Change.
The Austin Levers of Economic Mobility Index (LEMI) is a people-focused, place-based tool designed to help the City of Austin understand and respond to the conditions that shape residents’ ability to thrive. Use this StoryMap to explore the methodology and discover how place influences economic mobility and quality of life across our communities.
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Framework at a Glance
Some neighborhoods are thriving, while others continue to experience structural barriers and long-standing disparities that limit opportunities for families across generations. Economic mobility is about systems, places, and conditions — not individual effort.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Economic mobility addresses systems to improve unfair conditions that influence whether individuals, families, and communities can prosper over time and across generations. It means access to opportunities and resources needed for basic needs, financial security, and a dignified, high quality of life — regardless of race, place, gender, or ability.
The Austin Levers of Economic Mobility Index (LEMI) is a neighborhood-level data tool that measures structural conditions that influence economic mobility in Austin. It combines 18 levers across health, livelihood, and access-related domains to provide a consistent, census tract-level view of conditions across the city.
The LEMI measures structural conditions, not individual outcomes.
It looks at whether neighborhoods have the kinds of infrastructure and resources that support economic mobility, recognizing that these conditions come from long‑term policies and public investment.
The index includes levers related to:
- Health and Wellbeing
- Income and Employment
- Housing Stability and Cost Burdens
- Education, Digital Access, and Environmental Conditions
It does not measure individual income growth. It is not a poverty index. It is not a funding formula. It does not assign blame to communities or label neighborhoods.
The LEMI provides relative comparisons of structural conditions within the study area, recognizing that historical policies and investment decisions have contributed to current conditions.
Research shows that the neighborhood in which a child grows up has measurable long-term effects on income, health, and life expectancy. Place-based conditions, such as access to care, internet, housing stability, and safe environments, influence opportunity across generations.
The Index was created using best-practice methods from the OECD Handbook on Constructing Composite Indicators. Data from the 2020 Census were analyzed at the neighborhood (Census tract) level. Each lever was normalized using percentile rankings, and the three themes of the index are weighted equally. Final scores range from 1 to 100 for ease of understanding, and comparability. Missing data were addressed using validated statistical methods.
A full technical report provides the methodology in detail.
LEMI is a decision-support tool. It can help:
- Identify geographic patterns of structural barriers
- Inform policy, capital investment decisions and support intentional outreach and programming
- Align cross-department strategies
- Support grant applications and policy analysis
It is most effective when used alongside community engagement, operational dashboards, and local expertise.
The LEMI is available through an interactive StoryMap that supports users to explore tract-level scores, view theme breakdowns, and access additional geographic overlays.