Public goods, we all use them, but do we know what they are? Public goods are the product of public investment – think early education, roads, healthcare. Public goods also strengthen our economy by guaranteeing access to shared resources that meet people’s basic needs.

In 2025, New Mexico became the first state in the nation to pass universal child care legislation. Treating care as public infrastructure benefits care recipients, care workers, and caregivers alike, while strengthening the economy for all of us. Recognizing care as a public good and investing in it as such—funded with public dollars to meet demand and available to all who need it—is one of the most effective ways to confront the nation’s long history of racial and economic inequity.

New Mexico has demonstrated what is possible when communities build power and organize for the long term. Drawing from Demos’ new case study Winning Universal Child Care in New Mexico, this webinar will explore how a broad coalition of parents, educators, advocates, and grassroots organizations secured one of the country's most ambitious social policy victories and how to scale it.

Participants will hear directly from movement organizations on the ground, like Organizers in the Land of Enchantment (OLÉ) and the Center for Civic Policy, as well as national groups like the State Revenue Alliance and Dēmos, about the key strategies that can help advance transformational policy solutions for public goods in states across the country. Join us to learn more about how coalition building, sustainable funding, long-term organizing, and effective public messaging turned a bold idea into durable policy change. A stronger economy starts with stronger public goods.