2023 Emerging Issues Forum: “Talent First Economics”

The February 2022 Emerging Issues Forum will create the space to examine a key question: How can we close the educational attainment gap and achieve the myFutureNC goal of 2 million North Carolinians with a high-quality credential or postsecondary degree by 2030? This is a critical issue to address, but it is only part of the answer to meeting the state’s economic needs. While the 2022 Forum will focus on overcoming the barriers workers face in getting the skills they need for employment, the 2023 Forum will examine the barriers that make it difficult for these workers to find employment and stay in the workplace. Workforce and economic development efforts have historically focused on employer demand; the 2023 Forum will look at what employees are looking for, and what we can do to locate, energize, equip and unleash North Carolina’s abundance of talent.