Legacy 2002, a project of the Healthy Community Initiative of Greater Orlando, brings together 30 indicators of sustainability – long-term health and vitality in all sectors – for Greater Orlando and Orange County.
The report summarizes 10 Key Findings:
- Poverty Has Been Reduced – since 1990 poverty is down, incomes are up and the size of the middle class has stayed relatively stable.
- Our Economy is Still At Risk – jobs are still concentrated in the service sector, where stability is uncertain. Time spent in traffic is having a negative impact on our community’s economic status and on the individual’s bottom line.
- We Are Protecting Our Open Space – by setting land aside for parks, nature preserves and in other ways.
- Our Natural Environment is Still at Risk – Surface water quantity in lakes and streams keeps falling and toxic releases are up.
- Our Children are Mostly Better Off – Child poverty is down, juvenile crime is down and test scores are showing slight improvement.
- Our Highly Mobile Communities are Slowly Stabilizing – Although over 100,000 people still leave or arrive each year, that percentage is slowly declining.
- Serious Challenges to Families Remain – Housing costs are still on the rise (both home ownership and rent), affordable health insurance and poverty are still serious threats to middle income groups.
- We are Exhausting Our Natural Resources – Sprawl rates are up, water consumption is projected to exceed sustainable levels in the near term, and congestion and electricity and gas consumption are on the rise, increasing toxic emissions.
- We know More, but not Enough – Data on seniors is still lacking and the effects of mobility and the increasing numbers of uninsured have not been studied.
- Our Community is Optimistic About the Future – Poll results show that the general population is optimistic about the future, bringing hope that we can strengthen the positive trends and reverse the negative ones.
To view and purchase a copy of the full report go to www.hciflorida.org.
