This glossary provides working definitions for key terms and concepts in the Boosting Upward Mobility project. They are likely to evolve as Urban Institute experts and participating counties continue to learn about what it takes to increase upward mobility from poverty. You can refer to this glossary to better understand the shared language we are using in our work, blog posts, Evidence Resource Library, and publications.

being valued in community

The respect, dignity, and sense of belonging that a person feels when they contribute to and are valued by people in their community.

community engagement

process by which community members come together to reflect on and make decisions about the future of their community. When done well, this process is accessible, fair, and engaging and redistributes power, uplifts local values and knowledge, and builds trust among community members.

cross-sector partnerships

Efforts that involve stakeholders from the public, private, nonprofit, and philanthropic sectors who work together toward shared objectives.

domain

The policy area related to specific factors or predictors strongly associated with a person’s long-term upward mobility. Local leaders can work across policy areas to influence and improve outcomes for people and families. 

economic success

Adequate income and assets that support a person and their families’ material well-being.

inequity

An unfair or unjust outcome caused by the distribution or allocation of a resource, these often result from institutional policies, practices, or structural barriers.

local leaders

People in a position to assert influence and effect change in the policies, practices, and norms of their community. They include government officials as well as business, civic, and community leaders.

Mobility Action Plan (MAP)

The strategy for action produced by a county, its cross-sector partners, and its residents, with technical assistance from the Urban Institute. Informed by the mobility metrics, it serves as a blueprint for local leaders to create or strengthen conditions that boost upward mobility and narrow racial equity gaps.

mobility metrics

A set of 26 specific measures that represent key predictors of upward mobility. They can be used to compare conditions across communities, prioritize areas of greatest need, highlight interconnections among policy domains, set targets for improvement, and monitor progress toward cultivating conditions that support greater mobility from poverty.

peer learning

Opportunities for the counties in the Upward Mobility Cohort (defined below) to participate in convenings, workshops, dialogues, and trainings to develop best practices and share knowledge across the cohort about strategies to promote upward mobility.

pillar

Five essential, interconnected supports of social and economic life that families and individuals need to achieve economic success, power, and dignity. These five pillars support upward mobility and ensure equitable access.

power and autonomy

The ability to have control over one’s life, to make choices, and to influence larger policies and actions that affect one’s future.

predictors

Factors that research shows can boost or block long-term upward mobility and that local leaders can influence in the short and medium term. Urban Institute’s mobility metrics framework is composed of 24 predictors that are grouped under five pillars that support upward mobility.

racial equity

A state in which a person’s race does not limit either their opportunities or their likelihood of success.

structural racism

The historical and contemporary policies, practices, and norms that create and maintain the dominant position of white people in US society and perpetuate inequities among people of different races.

systems change

A fundamental shift in practices, underlying values, or norms that reshapes policies, processes, relationships, and power structures.

technical assistance

Support provided to an organization to strengthen its capacity in data analysis, policy and programmatic development, and stakeholder and community engagement.

Upward Mobility Cohort

The group of eight counties that received technical assistance from the Urban Institute to pilot the mobility metrics and develop Mobility Action Plans in their communities.

upward mobility from poverty

The ability for people and families experiencing poverty to achieve and sustain increased economic success, power and autonomy, and a sense of being valued in their community.