Q&A with Gregory Bruich: The Geography of Opportunity
Gregory Bruich, Harvard economist and Conference on Market-Based Solutions for Reducing Wealth Inequality speaker, discusses how to get children into better neighborhoods — and better lives.
Commentary
In the below commentaries, institute experts analyze and respond to the most pressing economic and business news of the day. To speak with one of our authors, please contact External Affairs Assistant Director Rob Knapp.
Q&A with Dionne Griffin McGee: Equity in Enterprise
How do we efficiently supply the resources that small and rural communities need to build and sustain businesses? Conference on Market-Based Solutions for Reducing Wealth Inequality speaker Dionne Griffin McGee offers her thoughts.
The US Construction Productivity Gap: Southern and Inland Cities Outperform
Cities with high construction productivity, driven by flexible regulations, strong logistics networks, good weather and a growing population, offer businesses an attractive environment for expansion.
Q&A with Kala Gibson: Banking on Impact
Fifth Third Bank executive Kala Gibson says his organization believes it has an obligation to use its capital in ways that expand access and remove long-standing barriers to opportunity.
Why Has Housing Become So Unaffordable?
In the past few years, buying a home has become much more expensive for the typical North Carolina household. We look at a few of the reasons why costs are rising so sharply for new buyers.
American Growth Project: Top-Performing EMAs for 2026
Many of 2025’s economic challenges are expected to persist in 2026, and some Extended Metropolitan Areas will be more resilient to headwinds than others. Find out which EMA economies the American Growth Project expects will expand the most.
Five Economic Trends to Watch in 2026
Want to know which issues are top of mind for business leaders as we enter 2026? Chief Economist Gerald Cohen gives you the big questions for the new year in his annual Five Trends.
Q&A with Annelies Goger: Reframing the Skills Gap
Kenan Institute Distinguished Fellow Annelies Goger asks how we’ll change educational institutions to prepare for the shift AI will bring in what people do and what they need to know. “It will require all hands on deck,” she says.
Skilled Tech Workers Help Drive Local Productivity
As businesses increasingly rely on technology, cities with a strong tech workforce gain a competitive edge, experiencing greater economic growth. This shift can be seen in both urban centers and rural areas.
Q&A with David Deming: Bridging the Skills Gap with Artificial Intelligence
Kenan Institute Distinguished Fellow David Deming of Harvard talks about his research focusing on the potential for effective teamwork involving humans and artificial intelligence.
Job Growth Fails To Ease Consumers’ Gloom
Despite positive labor market indicators, consumer sentiment has declined steadily in 2025 as fears of inflation rise. The result could be a reduction in consumer spending.
American Growth Project: Top-Performing EMAs for 2025
The Kenan Institute’s projected 2025 GDP growth rates for 150 Extended Metropolitan Areas across the United States anticipate a slowdown, but our data indicate that all of those areas will see GDP growth this year.
From Tobacco to High Tech: Manufacturing in the Piedmont Triad and the Research Triangle
The Research Triangle and the Piedmont Triad epitomize North Carolina’s economic evolution. The Triangle transitioned from legacy industries to high-tech manufacturing and experienced explosive economic growth; the Triad may be poised to join it.
Five Economic Trends to Watch in 2025
Kenan Institute Chief Economist Gerald Cohen kicks off 2025 with a rundown of five issues that will be top of mind for business leaders and policymakers, accompanied by his analysis.
On Site at COP29: Hope and Hard Realities
UNC-Chapel Hill’s youth representative at this year’s UN climate conference offers her thoughts on key outcomes, the role of the private sector, and the power of diverse and cross-generational perspectives in finding solutions.
Shaping North Carolina’s Future with Jim Johnson
Johnson, director of the Urban Investment Strategies Center, discusses how his research sheds light on key issues that will help determine the state’s economic future.
Business Resilience and Risk Management: The Change Healthcare Cyberattack
A February cyberattack targeting Change Healthcare resulted in the most extensive healthcare data breach to date, raising questions about industrywide risk management and regulation.
UPDATE: Reconsidering Chevron: Will Regulation Be Upended?
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the “Chevron deference,” a legal doctrine that grants regulatory agencies authority in interpreting statutes. The decision could significantly alter the regulatory landscape.
Building Business Resilience in an Age of Radical Uncertainty
As a once-orderly world grows messier in the post-pandemic era, UNC Kenan-Flagler’s Christian Lundblad discusses strategic planning for low-probability, high-impact events.
Marketing at a Crossroads, Part II: Personalization vs. Privacy and the Rise of First-Party Data
With a growing emphasis on prioritizing user privacy and data protection, says UNC Kenan-Flagler’s Longxiu Tian, information collected directly from customers becomes the key to solving the puzzle of personalization and accurate targeting for marketers.
Marketing at a Crossroads, Part I: The Privacy Paradigm Shift
Longxiu Tian, UNC Kenan-Flagler assistant professor of marketing, shares his expertise in resilient business strategies and his perspective on firms’ attempts to build trust and profitability with innovative consumer data management strategies.
The NAR Settlement and First-Time Homebuyers
The settlement with the National Association of Realtors will alter how real estate agents do business. Eric Maribojoc, associate director for the Affordable Housing Initiative at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, discusses changes we might see.
American Growth Project: Top-Performing EMAs for 2024
The Kenan Institute’s projected 2024 GDP growth rates for 150 microeconomies across the United States anticipate a slowdown, with almost all our 150 Extended Metropolitan Areas experiencing a deceleration.
Why Is the Fed Waiting?
By all accounts, there is steady good news coming the Federal Reserve’s way. And yet, the Fed seems to be in no rush to start cutting rates. Dive deeper into what the Fed will do to make sure inflation remains at that 2% goal.