Current Issues

Economic Pulse articles aim at providing data-driven analytics that could be used by lay business owners, policymakers, and the general public. The common thread among these articles is the focus on regional economic development, particularly in South Texas.

Disconnected Youth in Corpus Christi ...

In Corpus Christi, more than 6,000 youths between the ages of 16 and 24 are disconnected from work and education, making up slightly less than 15% of the youth population. Disconnected youth are dominated by people of color, especially women who are married, less educated, and have children. The wide socioeconomic gaps notably for Hispanic women are exacerbated by their traditional gender roles to be the primary household members to care for children and older relatives.

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Environmental Justice in Corpus Christi ...

Federal government agencies have developed online tools to implement the Biden Administration's Justice40 Initiative. Those tools help us better understand the extent and nature of environmental and socioeconomic inequities locally. Future government-supported projects will strive to generate disproportionate benefits to federally designated Disadvantaged Communities, which have historically been overburdened by environmental impacts under climate change.

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Coastal Bend's Innovation Capacity ...

Innovation is a key driver of sustainable economic growth, and the Coastal Bend has a moderate innovation capacity in comparison with other areas in the nation. In the nation's transition to net-zero emissions, the Coastal Bend is well-positioned to develop a hydrogen hub with carbon capture and storage infrastructure as an alternative energy source, but technological know how remains a deciding factor.

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Bitcoin Miners Coming to Town? ...

Miscounts of the population in Corpus Christi and Texas may shortchange their local communities of political representation and federal funding. Crytocurrency miners have been eyeing Texas as a base for their mining operations. And Bootstrap Energy plans to build a mining plant in Corpus Christi that is extremely energy intensive. There is much opportunity in this technology and for the creation of new jobs. But, as the idiom goes, the devil is in the details.

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Upward Mobiity in Corpus Christi ...

Economic connectedness in the form of friendships between rich and poor children helps create a pathway out of poverty for the poor later in life. Other than climbing up the economic ladder within the same community, people can achieve better economic outcomes by moving to an area that provides them with more economic opportunities. Yet poor young people are less likely than rich young people to move out of Corpus Christi.

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Corpus Christi's Growth Future ...

This is an ArcGIC Storymap about Corpus Christi's growth limits based on GeoRED's data.

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Pre-K for CC ...

Corpus Christi provides early education to only one in five preschoolers ages 3 and 4. Inequities in early childhood education prevail across different neighborhoods. Kindergarteners learn more in communities with more pre-K services.

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