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07 / Financial literacy

Money, explained by people still learning it.

Short, honest write-ups from the youth team — budgeting, saving, investing, and the habits that compound. The same lessons we teach in our workshops, written down.

  1. 01

    What a Dollar Actually Is

    Money isn't wealth — it's a claim on it. Here's where a dollar comes from, and why that matters before you spend one.

    Module 01 · Money basics

  2. 02

    The Envelope Method

    Budgeting fails because it's abstract. Splitting money into jobs the moment it arrives fixes that — no spreadsheet required.

    Module 02 · Budgeting & saving

  3. 03

    Where Your Money Sleeps: Banks vs. Credit

    A bank stores your money. A credit card lends you someone else's. Knowing the difference is the difference between interest working for you or against you.

    Module 03 · Banks vs. credit

  4. 04

    The $2 Coffee That Could Cost You $31,000

    Compound interest is the most powerful force in your money — and it works for whoever is patient. Here's the math that makes wealth, and the math that takes it.

    Module 04 · Compound interest

  5. 05

    Your First Paycheck, Explained

    Why your $15/hour job doesn't pay you $15/hour — taxes, withholding, and the difference between what you earn and what you keep.

    Module 05 · Earning

  6. 06

    The Long Game: Why Patience Is the Cheat Code

    Generational wealth isn't built by picking winners. It's built by ordinary people who started early, stayed in, and refused to panic.

    Module 06 · The long game

  7. 07

    Money's Three Jobs

    Medium of exchange, store of value, unit of account — why anything counts as money, and what happens when one of those jobs breaks.

    Economics · Medium of exchange

  8. 08

    Opportunity Cost: The Real Price of Everything

    The true cost of any choice isn't the money — it's the best thing you gave up to make it. Once you see it, you can't unsee it.

    Economics · Opportunity cost

  9. 09

    Supply, Demand, and Why Prices Move

    Nobody sets the 'right' price — it emerges from a tug-of-war between how much exists and how much people want it. Here's the mechanism.

    Economics · Supply & demand

  10. 10

    Inflation: Why Your Dollar Shrinks

    Your grandparents' $5 went much further than yours. That's inflation — a macro force that quietly taxes cash and rewards the invested.

    Economics · Inflation

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Financial Literacy — The Future Foundation