Ideas Challenge 2025: Youth Investment—Providing Opportunities for the Next Generation – Governing

Report on NewDEAL Ideas Challenge 2025 Finalists: Advancing Sustainable Development Goals for the Next Generation

The NewDEAL Ideas Challenge 2025 features three finalist initiatives under the category of “Providing Opportunities for the Next Generation.” These programs address critical societal challenges by creating sustainable frameworks for youth development, education, and economic stability, aligning closely with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

1. Early Childhood Education Endowment: Connecticut

   This initiative addresses systemic failures in early childhood care by establishing a sustainable funding model. The program directly confronts challenges related to affordability, educator compensation, and equitable access, which are critical barriers to long-term economic and social well-being.

   Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

   • SDG 4 (Quality Education): The endowment ensures sustainable funding for high-quality early childhood development and pre-primary education, building a strong foundation for lifelong learning.
   • SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth): By directing resources toward increased educator compensation, the initiative promotes decent work within the care sector. It also supports broader economic growth by enabling parents, particularly women, to participate in the workforce.
   • SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities): The policy actively reduces inequality by capping costs for income-eligible families and prioritizing resources for underserved communities.
   • SDG 5 (Gender Equality): By making child care more affordable and accessible, the program removes a significant structural barrier that often hinders women’s economic empowerment and career progression.

   Impact Measurement Framework

   • Total endowment deployment and principal growth over time.
   • Changes in enrollment and cost burdens for families in underserved communities.
   • Data on educator compensation levels and workforce retention rates.
   • Child development outcomes correlated with improved access to quality care.

2. Expanding Access to Child Care Through Zoning Reform: Maine

   This legislative reform targets regulatory barriers that limit the supply of child care, particularly in residential and urban areas. By amending restrictive local zoning and land-use regulations, the initiative aims to increase the availability and affordability of care, making communities more inclusive and supportive of working families.

   Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

   • SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities): The reform promotes inclusive and sustainable urbanization by ensuring that essential services like child care are integrated into residential zones, reducing travel distances and strengthening community infrastructure.
   • SDG 4 (Quality Education): By removing barriers to opening new child care facilities, the policy directly increases access to early childhood education for more children.
   • SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth): The initiative fosters entrepreneurship by making it easier to establish in-home child care businesses, thereby creating jobs and supporting the economic productivity of working parents.
   • SDG 5 (Gender Equality): Increasing the local supply of child care provides critical support for working mothers, contributing to greater gender equality in the workforce.

   Impact Measurement Framework

   • Increase in the number of in-home child care businesses in previously restricted residential zones.
   • Growth of urban and downtown providers utilizing the relaxed outdoor-space rule.
   • Reduction in travel distances for families seeking licensed care in underserved areas.

3. Camp RISE: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

   Camp RISE is an early-career intervention program designed for youth aged 10–13 who face high rates of instability and exposure to violence. The program provides a trauma-informed, supportive environment that combines paid career exploration with mentorship and mental health resources, aiming to alter life trajectories before disconnection becomes entrenched.

   Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

   • SDG 4 (Quality Education): The camp provides vital non-formal education, focusing on skills development and career awareness to foster a positive orientation toward future learning and employment.
   • SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth): As an early intervention, the program prepares young people for future participation in the workforce, addressing youth disengagement that can lead to long-term unemployment.
   • SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being): The integration of mental health supports and a trauma-informed approach directly contributes to the well-being of a vulnerable youth population.
   • SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities): The program specifically targets at-risk youth facing housing and food insecurity, providing them with opportunities and support systems to overcome systemic disadvantages.
   • SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions): By providing positive engagement and developmental pathways, the initiative serves as a preventative measure to curb future involvement in the juvenile justice system.

   Impact Measurement Framework

   • Percentage of participants reporting increased confidence in career planning (70%).
   • Parent/guardian reports on improvements in campers’ social skills (88%) and confidence (84%).
   • Willingness of families to re-enroll (97%), indicating program value and effectiveness.
   • Tracking of participants as they age into traditional workforce development programs.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 4: Quality Education

  The article’s primary focus is on early childhood education and youth development. The “Early Childhood Education Endowment” aims to create a stable funding model for “high-quality early-care settings.” The “Expanding Access to Child Care Through Zoning Reform” initiative seeks to increase the supply and accessibility of child care. “Camp RISE” is an early-career intervention program designed to improve educational and career outcomes for youth by providing skills and confidence.

• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

  This goal is addressed through efforts to strengthen the workforce and support working families. The Connecticut initiative aims to increase “educator compensation” and improve “retention rates,” promoting decent work for early-childhood educators. The Maine initiative supports “working parents” by increasing child care availability, which enables their participation in the workforce. Camp RISE provides youth with “paid career exploration” and skills for future employment, addressing the challenge of youth disengagement from the economy.

• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

  The initiatives specifically target vulnerable and underserved populations. The “Early Childhood Education Endowment” “caps costs for income-eligible families and directs resources toward underserved areas.” Camp RISE addresses the “youth-disconnection crisis” affecting children facing “housing instability, food insecurity and exposure to violence,” aiming to provide them with pathways to stability and inclusion.

• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

  The Maine initiative, “Expanding Access to Child Care Through Zoning Reform,” directly relates to sustainable urban planning. It addresses how “local zoning and land-use regulations” can be reformed to improve access to essential services like child care. By allowing providers in all residential zones and relaxing rules about outdoor space, it makes communities more inclusive and supportive for families, especially in “urban and downtown” areas.

• SDG 1: No Poverty

  Camp RISE in Milwaukee addresses several dimensions of poverty by targeting youth facing “housing instability” and “food insecurity.” The program’s goal to “reduce future dependency on public assistance” by providing early intervention and pathways to employment is a direct strategy for poverty reduction.

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

  The Camp RISE program is designed as a preventative measure to support at-risk youth. The article notes that its approach helps to “curb juvenile justice involvement” by addressing root causes of disengagement and providing positive mentorship and support systems for children exposed to violence.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Target 4.2: Ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education.

   This is the most prominent target. The Connecticut endowment aims to improve access and quality through sustainable funding and cost-capping for families. The Maine zoning reform directly tackles the supply-side barriers to child care, aiming to increase the number of available providers so more children can access care.

2. Target 8.5: Achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men… and equal pay for work of equal value.

   The “Early Childhood Education Endowment” directly supports this target by focusing on increasing “educator compensation levels and retention rates,” addressing the issue of low wages in the sector. Furthermore, by making child care more accessible, all three initiatives support the ability of parents to maintain full and productive employment.

3. Target 8.6: Substantially reduce the proportion of youth not in employment, education or training (NEET).

   Camp RISE is an “early-career intervention” specifically designed to prevent youth from becoming disengaged. By providing career exploration, skills, and confidence to 10-13 year-olds, it aims to create an “early-career pipeline” and shift their trajectories away from future disconnection.

4. Target 10.2: Empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of… economic or other status.

   The Connecticut initiative explicitly “caps costs for income-eligible families” and directs resources to “underserved communities,” directly promoting economic inclusion. Camp RISE works with youth facing high rates of instability and insecurity, providing them with the tools and support needed for future social and economic participation.

5. Target 11.3: Enhance inclusive and sustainable urbanization and capacity for… sustainable human settlement planning and management.

   The Maine zoning reform is a direct example of changing settlement planning to be more inclusive. By removing “location-based bans” on child care in residential zones, the policy makes it easier to integrate essential family services into the fabric of communities, reducing travel distances and supporting residents.

6. Target 16.2: End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children.

   While not a direct intervention, Camp RISE addresses the context of this target by working with youth who have “exposure to violence.” By providing a “trauma-informed” and supportive environment, the program serves as a protective factor and aims to “curb juvenile justice involvement,” which is often linked to cycles of violence and instability.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

Yes, the article explicitly lists metrics under the “Impact & Measurement” section for each initiative. These can be mapped to SDG indicators.

• Indicators for SDG 4 (Quality Education)

  • Enrollment changes in underserved communities: Mentioned for the Connecticut endowment, this measures access to early childhood education (Target 4.2).
  • Family participation and child-development outcomes: Also from the Connecticut initiative, this measures the quality and impact of the education provided (Target 4.2).
  • Increase in the number of in-home child-care businesses: A key metric for the Maine reform, indicating an increased supply of and access to child care (Target 4.2).
  • Percentage of campers reporting increased confidence in career planning: A metric for Camp RISE that measures the effectiveness of the educational and vocational guidance provided (related to Target 4.4 on relevant skills).

• Indicators for SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth)

  • Educator compensation levels and retention rates: An explicit indicator for the Connecticut endowment to measure progress on providing decent work for the early-childhood workforce (Target 8.5).
  • Early-career pipeline effects as campers age into other workforce programs: A long-term indicator for Camp RISE to track its success in reducing the number of youth not in education or employment (Target 8.6).

• Indicators for SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) & SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities)

  • Cost-capping for families: A metric for the Connecticut endowment that directly measures efforts to reduce financial barriers for income-eligible families (Target 10.2).
  • Reduction in travel distances for families seeking licensed care: An indicator for the Maine zoning reform that measures improved access to services within communities, particularly in previously underserved areas (Target 11.3).

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: governing.com