The annual gathering of the world's central bankers at the Economic Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, provides important clues about what policymakers think of the U.S. economy, and what moves they have in mind. 

While tourists soak up the scenery of Grand Teton National Park, bankers and economists are tucked inside this lodge, out of public view and away from reporters. They're discussing a very complex issue: how can the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks boost growth and jobs at a time when many world governments are reluctant to invest money of their own.

The Fed has provided huge economic stimulus since the 2008 financial crash but some analysts say it may be time to let rates rise.

"The issue is interest rates are near historic lows and they have been near historic lows for seven years. The Federal Reserve has been pumping hundreds of billions of dollars. When will this stop," said Jack Strauss, Univ. of Denver Daniels College of Business.

On Friday, Fed Chair Janet Yellen is expected to offer her take on the economy, send some sort of signal about when the central bank intends to resume interest rate hikes and indicate how the Fed might tackle the next economic downturn at a time when growth is slow already. Some argue higher borrowing costs will only hurt average workers.

"In that world we're living in right now why not try to get every job that we can, every gain in wages that we can, particularly when we know that at this point the people are going to benefit from that are disproportionately people of color," said Shawn Sebastian, field dir. of  Fed Up Coalition

On this Thursday afternoon, eight members of the Fed's policy-making committee, some seen here last year, took the unusual step of meeting with members of Fed Up, an activist coalition of community and labor groups that wants the central bank to do even more to get the economy going.

Investors on Wall Street and elsewhere hope that Yellen offers some sort of indication of when interest rates might finally go back up. It may not happen soon but Yellen is expected to lay out the general monetary path ahead.