Prevention Is the Smartest Investment: A New Approach to Place-Based Economic Resilience

What if we stopped paying for crises – and started funding prevention?

Across communities, working individuals and families are falling through the cracks. They earn too much to qualify for public benefits, but not enough to weather a financial shock. These are the neighbors who hold our local economies together – childcare providers, home health aides, food service workers – yet one unexpected bill can push them into spiraling debt, eviction, or long-term hardship.

This conversation couldn’t be more urgent. Federal, state, and local governments are facing significant funding uncertainty and budget cuts, even as demand for public benefits grows. Without early intervention, many working individuals will soon join the backlog of new applicants – further straining already overburdened systems. Prevention isn’t just compassionate – it’s efficient. It helps people recover before long-term damage is done, keeping them stable, housed, and working without needing deeper public expenditure.

This session explores a new model of place-based prevention philanthropy: short-term stabilization assistance, delivered through community-informed infrastructure and collaborative partnerships. Inspired by the Workforce Stability Fund concept, developed by AidKit and Impact Charitable, this model targets the “missing middle” e.g., working individuals who earn too much for public benefits but not enough to stay financially secure. It offers an aversion strategy: intervening early to prevent deeper crises, strengthening household stability, and relieving pressure on overburdened systems. The result? A smarter approach to building economic resilience and reducing public costs before downstream harm occurs.