Investing in people, places key for future

We’re coming into that time of year when it’s easy to be seduced by the state of Michigan.

Anyone who has set eyes on the Straits of Mackinac will know what we mean. Or visited Sleeping Bear sand dunes. Or taken in a Lake Michigan sunset.

From Pine Knob to Comerica Park, it’s tough to beat warm-weather Michigan.

And so it came like an unwelcome splash of cold water in the face when a pair of reports landed last week that painted a dire picture of our great state’s future.

e portrait was truly bleak. We’re on a path to get poorer, sicker and, well — how do we put this politely? — less educated.

Why? Because of the population of our state is atlining, according to the studies, the rst two in a series of ve, by the Citizens Research Council of Michigan and Ann Arbor-based Altarum, a nonpro t that focuses on health.

e research found that Michigan is growing, barely, but not nearly at the rate as the rest of the nation. And certainly not as fast as states in the South and West.

You may wonder why this matters. In a world where it seems the population is bursting, isn’t it great that we’re controlling our growth? Doesn’t that mean more room and resources for the rest of us?

If only it were that simple. A stagnating population means slower economic growth, which leads to all sorts of negative outcomes, notably pertaining to health, education and earnings potential. And it means diminished political power — Michigan went from 19 congressional seats in 1970 to 13 following the 2020 Census. e problem is well-articulated. e solution is not as clear. e question is how do we reinvent and position ourselves for the future? e highwage jobs of today and tomorrow are knowledge-based, and gaining those requires investment in quality education.

Natural growth, or more births than deaths, has slowed and will be negative by 2040. Meanwhile, domestic migration — people moving in or out of the state — has been and will continue to be negative.

Yes, international immigration has shown positive in- ows but not at a rate that would make up for the losses in the other two categories.

While rich in natural resources and beauty, we are a state whose prosperity over the past 100 years was forged by heavy industry, mostly in service of the automobile. ere was a time when Detroit was the vanguard of innovation, the Silicon Valley of its day. It’s almost as though, to conjure another California phenomenon, Detroit was an enormous gold-rush town — and its bust has been slowly playing out over the past 50 years.

Younger workers today seek a strong sense of place, meaning vibrant cities that are walkable and full of activity. We have work to do to invest in our people and places to make our state more attractive to outside investors, and our own youth.

Yes, we can take them on a breathtaking dune hike. But when they get home, they’re going to need a quality education and a good-paying job to keep them here.