What if? is an easy-to-use GIS-based system that can be used to explore alternate futures for a community and prepare long-term land use, population, housing and employment projections for enumeration districts, political jurisdictions, and user-defined areas such as school districts, and traffic analysis zones. The package is easy to use, customized to the user's GIS data and policy issues, and provides outputs in a variety of easy-to-understand maps and tables.

As its name suggests, What if? allows public officials and private citizens to determine determining what would happen if public policy choices are made and assumptions about the future prove to be true. Policy choices that can be considered in the model include: (1) the expansion of public infrastructure; (2) the implementation of farmland or open space protection policies, and (3) the adoption of land use plans, zoning ordinances, and other growth controls. Assumptions that can be considered in the model include future population and employment trends and development densities.

What if? has been designed to be used by non-technical people and in public settings, allowing currently available GIS information to be used to support community dialogue and collaborative decision-making.