The Economic Opportunities Program advances strategies, policies, and ideas to help low- and moderate-income people thrive in a changing economy.

We recognize that race, gender, and place intersect with and intensify the challenge of economic inequality and we address these dynamics by advancing an inclusive vision of economic justice. For over 25 years, EOP has focused on expanding individuals’ opportunities to connect to quality work, start businesses, and build economic stability that provides the freedom to pursue opportunity.

We collaborate with national and local leaders across the United States – nonprofit leaders, policymakers, labor leaders, business leaders, educators, academics, and more – and we actively seek input and ideas from individuals and communities affected by proposed approaches to address economic opportunity challenges. Through our leadership and fellowship programs; applied research and evaluation; data and analysis; and dialogue with diverse stakeholders, we work at both local and national levels to build understanding and galvanize action to address the challenge of economic opportunity in America.

Join our mailing list and follow us on social media for regular updates on our work.

Building a Digitally Resilient Workforce: Creating On-Ramps to Opportunity
Blog Posts

Building a Digitally Resilient Workforce: Creating On-Ramps to Opportunity

We must create an ecosystem where workers have the foundational digital skills to thrive in work and life.

Futures for Frontliners
Blog Posts

Upskilling in the News: Michigan Announces Tuition-Free Education Program for Essential Workers

“Futures for Frontliners” offers tuition-free education for workers in hospitals, nursing homes, grocery stores, child care, and more.

Poorly paid workers deserve better than going back to “normal”
Blog Posts

Poorly paid workers deserve better than going back to “normal”

Before we rush to reestablish things as they were, we should ask whether that’s really where we want to go.

Grocery store worker and customer wearing masks in the checkout line (Photo courtesy of Marketplace. Credit: Al Bello/Getty Images)
Blog Posts

Maureen Conway Talks COVID-19, Benefits, and ‘Essential’ Work on Marketplace

Many ‘essential’ workers in grocery stores, delivery, and food service lack key benefits like health coverage, hazard pay, and sick leave.

Milinda Ysasi, Job Quality Fellow
Blog Posts Longform

Milinda Ysasi, Job Quality Fellow

Milinda Ysasi shows companies the value they gain by connecting workers to resources like transportation, child care, housing, and food assistance.

Linda Nguyen, Job Quality Fellow
Blog Posts Longform

Linda Nguyen, Job Quality Fellow

Governments in the US spend $2 trillion annually. Linda Nguyen works to ensure this money supports quality jobs and healthy communities.

Amanda Ream, Job Quality Fellow
Blog Posts Longform

Amanda Ream, Job Quality Fellow

Our supply of home health care workers has not kept pace with demand. Amanda Ream works to ensure long-term care jobs are good jobs.

Tanya Wallace-Gobern, Job Quality Fellow
Blog Posts Longform

Tanya Wallace-Gobern, Job Quality Fellow

At NBWCP, Tanya Wallace-Gobern is working to address a two-dimensional jobs crisis facing Black communities: unemployment and low-wage work.

Justine Zinkin, Job Quality Fellow
Blog Posts Longform

Justine Zinkin, Job Quality Fellow

Financial wellness is a building block of worker wellbeing. Under the leadership of Justine Zinkin, NTFP helps people achieve their financial goals.

A factory worker presents a new business strategy to his managers and colleagues.
Blog Posts

Giving a Voice – and Support – to American Workers

The US has a job quality problem, but new paradigms of worker voice are pushing job quality forward.

Economic Opportunities Program Newsletter, April 2020
Blog Posts

Economic Opportunities Program Newsletter, April 2020

We are in an extraordinary time. Learn how we’re working to advance opportunity in an uncertain economy.

Photo of Drew Greenblatt (President, Marlin Steel) in his factory
Blog Posts Videos

A High Road Company’s Rapid Response to COVID-19: A Conversation with Marlin Steel President Drew Greenblatt

Combining good business with good jobs, Marlin Steel offers a model that other employers can aspire to emulate.

About the Economic Opportunities Program

The Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program advances strategies, policies, and ideas to help low- and moderate-income people thrive in a changing economy.

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More from the Economic Opportunities Program

Foundational Skills: National Survey Findings
Publications

Foundational Skills: National Survey Findings

This publication examines how fragmented skills, credentialing, and workforce data systems limit the potential of skills-based hiring and advancement, and outlines a shared vision for building the interoperable infrastructure needed to create a connected skills ecosystem that benefits workers, employers, educators, and governments.

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Podcasts Videos

What Employee Ownership Means to Workers

This conversation is part of our Opportunity in America series, where we take a look at the economy, what’s working, what’s broken, and really how we fix it to make sure that everyone can succeed in today’s economy.

Resource Roundup: Wages and Affordability
Blog Posts
Room for Growth: A Survey of Upskilling Approaches — 2026 Analysis
Publications

Room for Growth: A Survey of Upskilling Approaches — 2026 Analysis

This publication examines how fragmented skills, credentialing, and workforce data systems limit the potential of skills-based hiring and advancement, and outlines a shared vision for building the interoperable infrastructure needed to create a connected skills ecosystem that benefits workers, employers, educators, and governments.

Building Economic Security: A Book Talk with Arindrajit Dube and Carrie Joy Grimes
Podcasts Videos

Building Economic Security: A Book Talk with Arindrajit Dube and Carrie Joy Grimes

Economic security shouldn’t be a lottery. Yet for millions of working families, stagnant wages and precarious jobs collide with the daily grind of managing money on shaky ground — leaving stability feeling less like a plan and more like a gamble. Fixing that takes more than one lever. It takes structural reform and the tools people need to take control of their financial lives, working together.

What Employee Ownership Means to Workers
Publications

What Employee Ownership Means to Workers

Insights from Focus Groups with Employee Owners