Later this week, I will join business and community leaders from across the country for a series of meetings in Louisville, Kentucky, hosted by Welcoming Economies. We will discuss how welcoming new immigrants has helped drive economic development and examine best practices for encouraging immigrants to choose a city as their new home. Before I go, I’d appreciate any advice you have – for other cities, businesses, or organizations – on what you’ve seen work well to attract immigrants to your hometown or company.
The various organizations represented at this conference are all focused on bringing diverse talent to, and keeping it within, the United States. They believe we can revitalize America’s cities by helping immigrants integrate into communities, enter the workforce, and start their own businesses.
Detroit has been successful at encouraging immigrants who graduate with STEM degrees to stay and work at Michigan companies. Philadelphia has a program that helps place immigrants in empty jobs, and St. Louis is home to an “ambassadors” program that matches immigrants with local business leaders in the same professional field. Has your city or business done anything similar we should highlight? Please either tweet your questions to us at @BusinessForward or send us an email at info@businessfwd.org.
Featured image from Flickr.