On his second day campaigning, former state Sen. Mike Johnston, who announced Tuesday he’s running for governor in 2018, set his sights on the next 10 years in Colorado, saying it’s imperative residents look ahead in the 21st century economy.
Johnston, a Democrat, said 3 million “high-quality” jobs are expected to be created during the next 10 years in the country, and 2.9 million of them will require post-secondary certifications.
“In the old universe, you got a degree at age 18 for a career you were going to keep for 50 years,” Johnston said Wednesday during a visit with The Durango Herald. “If you have a high school degree at age 18 now, it probably isn’t preparing you for the next 50 days.”
What’s more, most people entering the workforce will hold eight to 12 jobs over the course of their lifetimes, he said, which means they’ll have to move across professions as the economy forces changes in industries such as coal, journalism, real estate and dozens of others.
Ripples are felt through industries across the country as a result of automation and globalization, he said, and major political parties have so far been unsuccessful at addressing the upheaval.
In the presidential election, for example, Hillary Clinton seemed to say, “Sorry, that’s just globalization, and on the whole, that’s good for us,” while Donald Trump’s response was, “I know who did this to you, and I’m going to punch them in the face,” Johnston said.
Instead, he proposes what he calls the “lifetime opportunity promise,” which would provide up to two years of debt-free funding for college or skills training to anyone willing to provide “meaningful service” to the state. That could mean volunteering five weekends a year and helping in times of need on things like fire mitigation, flood prevention, trail repair, or any number of other services the state otherwise must pay for.
“The idea is opportunity should be linked to work,” he said. “... When we know industries are going to be deeply affected by these kinds of changes, we should have a role in trying to prepare those workers and those communities for what’s next.”
He acknowledged the plan is a work in progress, and much work remains on the logistics and implementation of such a plan.
“This is, directionally, I think, the kind of big and bold ideas we’re going to need to show we can bridge the divides that exist to solve the big problems ahead of us,” Johnston said. “I think that’s going to require someone who can articulate a big vision for how to get there and build the actual coalitions to do that.”
He also proposes innovative solutions for transportation congestion, such as using mobile technology to foster carpooling and to better control traffic jams.
“You can’t pave that many more lanes on I-25 or I-70, and what we find is the more roads you pave, the more cars you attract,” he said.
Johnston, 42, worked six years as a high school principal, helps his family run a small lodge in Eagle County and represented northeast Denver in the state Senate. He holds degrees from Yale, the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Yale Law School.
He also runs two nonprofits, including Urban Leaders Fellowship, which prepares young people to fight for social justice through public leadership.
shane@durangoherald.com
