economic mobility across demographic characteristics. the investing in america ’ s workforce initiative is a collaboration between the federal reserve system and academic research institutions to promote investment in workforce skills that better align with employers ’ needs. 36 all of that brings me to today ’ s conference, which i am confident will make an important contribution to this mission. i am heartened to see so many researchers and further information on these surveys are found on the board ’ s website ; see the surveys of consumer finances, https : / / www. federalreserve. gov / econres / scfindex. htm ; the survey of household economics and decisionmaking, https : / / www. federalreserve. gov / consumerscommunities / shed. htm ; the survey of young workers, https : / / www. federalreserve. gov / econresdata / 2016 - survey - young - workers - executivesummary. htm ; and the survey of enterprising and informal work activities, https : / / www. federalreserve. gov / consumerscommunities / files / eiwa _ chartbook _ 2016. pdf. for information about the opportunity and inclusive growth institute, see https : / / www. minneapolisfed. org / institute, for information about the economic growth and mobility project, see https : / / www. philadelphiafed. org / egmp, and for information about the america ’ s workforce initiative, see https : / / www. investinwork. org. - 15 practitioners from a variety of backgrounds focused on these important issues. this conference is part of our efforts to hear from experts with diverse backgrounds and perspectives to better understand the nature and implications of labor market disparities. a deeper understanding of labor market disparities is central to the mission of the federal reserve because it may help us better assess full employment, where resources may be underutilized, and the likely evolution of the labor market and overall economic activity. we look forward to hearing what you have to say about these important questions and learning what other questions are in need of attention. note : on september 27, 2017, a typo was corrected to change $ 25, 000 to $ 54, 000 in the following sentence on page 9 : " based on forthcoming scf data, for example, the average annual income for families in metro areas was about $ 54, 000 higher than for families in nonmetro areas, and the average

of coordinating the timing of policy reforms with the evolution of supporting institutions. some of the changes in the international economic environment in recent years appear favorable to a reduction in the likelihood of financial crises in emerging - market economies. although it is difficult to generalize, macroeconomic policymaking in emerging - market economies seems to have improved somewhat in recent years. the trend toward adoption of more flexible exchange rate regimes has already been mentioned. also, over the past decade policymakers in emerging - market countries seem to have developed a heightened recognition of the costs of high inflation, as evidenced by the general reduction of inflation rates in such economies over this period. the behavior of investors in international capital markets appears to have evolved in ways that make future financial crises somewhat less likely also. the composition of international capital flows has shifted toward relatively more foreign direct investment and longer - term portfolio investment and relatively less flows into shorter - term " hot money " investments. also, international investors seem to be differentiating more clearly among emerging - market economies, as indicated by the current wide dispersion of debt spreads across countries. this situation could mean less potential for serious contagion if one country gets into trouble, since there would be a reduced tendency to treat all emerging - market countries alike. the so far minimal financial market spillover to other emerging - market economies from the current difficulties in argentina and turkey is consistent with such a trend. furthermore, to the extent that international investors have differentiated among emerging markets, countries have incentives to improve the availability and quality of their economic data as a way of favorably distinguishing themselves. conclusion in conclusion, it is worth reiterating that the most important consideration in preventing future emerging - market financial crises is establishing sound domestic policies and robust financial institutions in individual economies. no reforms of the international financial architecture can, by themselves, overcome deficiencies in these critical areas. however, an incremental contribution can nonetheless be made through improvements in the international financial system and in international institutions. such initiatives can provide information, incentives, and assistance to emerging - market economies to encourage them to adopt sound policies and can mitigate the damage to international financial markets when problems do arise. a number of such initiatives are under way, and they hold the promise of reducing the incidence and severity of emerging - market financial crises in the future.