AUSTIN, Texas — Austin is taking a big step toward putting kids at the center of the city’s future.

Mayor Kirk Watson launched a new initiative aimed at making Austin the best place in America to be a kid.

Austin is home to about 176,000 children, or about one in five people.

Watson says the new effort, called Generation ATX, will focus on making sure they’re healthy, safe, and happy.

“It’ll be a national model for cities putting kids at the center of their futures,” Watson said.

He says it’s a movement designed to change the course of Austin’s future by focusing on where the city wants its children to be.

“I think the single best way for Austin to be the complete city we want it to be… is for us to focus on where we want our kids to be,” Watson said.

ALSO | Central Texas nonprofit seeks mentors for 47 students in need of guidance and support

CBS Austin reached out to the mayor’s office to find out how the initiative plans to reach each child in Austin, and which neighborhoods or demographics might be prioritized first.

The mayor’s office said, “The work that CivicSol will do for the next eight months in Phase One will help inform the questions you’ve asked. We don’t want to prejudge anything.”

CivicSol, an Austin-based public strategy and planning firm, is helping shape Generation ATX by defining its three pillars — healthy, safe, and happy kids.

They are also creating a scorecard to track progress and a roadmap to guide strategies that support children across the city.

“It is a proud thing for us to be serving the world from here,” said Ian Forber-Pratt, president of Children’s Emergency Relief International.

Children’s Emergency Relief International, or CERI, recently moved its global headquarters to Austin. The organization is one of several local and national partners supporting Generation ATX.

“This movement is being really smart in regard to data, understanding that there are lots of organizations working with kids, but are they coordinated, are they working together?” Forber-Pratt said.

He says protecting childhood goes hand in hand with strengthening the community — a goal also shared by the mayor.

“We love our kids. We want them to love their home. We want them to know that Austin loves them,” Watson said.

The first phase of Generation ATX began on Wednesday and will run through 2026.

The initiative is receiving initial funding from local partners, including H-E-B, Texas Mutual, the First Day Foundation, and Wells Fargo, which together contributed $200,000 in seed money.