Shaping Columbus: Influencers and the Power of Community Narratives
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
Release Date: 03/27/2024
Hiring Heroes: Why Ohio’s Workforce Needs Veterans
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
Only five other states are home to more veterans than Ohio. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Buckeye State is home to 729,645 veterans. Only California, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas have more veterans than Ohio. With the state’s unemployment rate well below historic averages, many employers are turning to veterans to fill open positions. While the veteran unemployment rate is nationally lower that the nonveteran unemployment rate, 3% versus 3.8%, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor, many returning veterans struggle to re-integrate themselves into the...
info_outline
Thriving Minds: Solving Ohio's Mental Health Crisis
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
Ohio’s mental healthcare needs are as acute as they’ve ever been, but Ohioans’ struggle with mental health has also achieved a new and higher level of visibility, thanks to the persistent dedication of mental health advocates. Mental health struggles are touching every part of Ohio’s population: children, adults, employers, and employees, and those of any age wrestling with addiction or thoughts of suicide. Ohio’s leaders in the field have also made clear that mental health issues aren’t merely healthcare issues, they’re workforce development issues: the state’s economy can’t...
info_outline
State of the State with Ohio Governor Mike DeWine
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
On April 10, 2024, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine delivered his “State of the State” address to a packed Ohio statehouse audience. Now in his second term, the Governor’s remarks were notably focused on key initiatives aimed to benefit the state’s youth, with special emphasis on improving the health and education of Ohio’s children and students. His remarks touched both on recent accomplishments and his hopes for the next steps state lawmakers might take on key issues, including programs intended to improve infant care, create school-based health clinics, and improve access to quality...
info_outline
Green Is The New Growth: Central Ohio's Sustainable Future
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
Imagine what economic growth looks like on a graph and you may picture a line slanting upwards from left to right. Have you ever wondered where the line stops? On a planet – or a region – with finite resources, it has to end somewhere. This realization is helping a very different model of economic growth to gain traction: the circular economy. Circular, or “doughnut,” economies are sustainable and regenerative, where waste from one process becomes fuel for another. It’s a model being popularized by economists like the U.K.’s Kate Raworth, and it’s taking root...
info_outline
How Immigrants Revitalize Communities
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
A leading factor behind population growth in Central Ohio are immigrants and refugees; in recent years, of the newcomers moving to Central Ohio from outside the state, half are international immigrants. The United States is home to the highest number of immigrants in the world. Some 50 million Americans —about 15% of the country’s population, were born in a foreign country. In Columbus, the nation’s 14th largest city, ten percent of the city’s residents are foreign born, a number that’s only expected to rise. Central Ohio’s reputation for affordable living and abundant...
info_outline
Pathways to Prosperity: Breaking the Poverty Cycle in Central Ohio
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
What are the chronic factors that are keeping so many Columbus families – more than one in ten – locked in a multi-generational cycle of poverty, and what new resources are needed to help these families break free of the poverty cycle once and for all? Central Ohio is a rapidly growing, vibrant community, generating the lion’s share of Ohio’s overall economic vitality. Yet despite its affluence and prosperity, Columbus is experiencing growing inequality between our neighbors with resources and those who are struggling. Franklin County’s poverty rate is higher than the statewide...
info_outline
From Solitude to Solidarity: Healing Ohio's Loneliness Epidemic
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
Optimal Health Series Human beings are wired for social connections, but when those connections are few, our health pays the price. The U.S. is suffering from a loneliness epidemic, and the toll it takes on our health is both enormous and measurable. In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General declared loneliness and isolation a “public health emergency,” saying loneliness can increase the risk for premature death to levels comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. The Surgeon General’s startling advisory found that poor social connections can raise the risk of heart disease by 29%, increase the...
info_outline
It’s Time to Close the Gender Wage Gap in Columbus
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
Mary Lazarus Legacy in Civic Engagement Fund Celebrating Women in Society The gender pay gap is unfair, inequitable, and even illegal – paying women less than men for the same work has been against the law in the US since 1963. And yet, based on today’s full-time, year-round wage gap, women entering the workforce stand to lose $398,160 over the course of a 40-year career. This “lifetime wage gap” exists across the country: in every state, women’s career losses based on today’s wage gap would amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars—and in 12 states women’s career losses would...
info_outline
Shaping Columbus: Influencers and the Power of Community Narratives
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
This dynamic conversation challenges the conventional understanding of influence, delving into the profound impact of social media influencers on the identity and evolution of Columbus, Ohio. By examining their roles in shaping the cultural and social fabric of Columbus, we’ll uncover the subtle yet powerful ways in which our community is being redefined. We explore the responsibilities that come with this influence, encouraging a dialogue on how diverse voices can drive a more inclusive and connected future for our city. Featuring Columbus social media influencers: Alissa Henry, Wife, Mom,...
info_outline
The Future of Healthcare
The Columbus Metropolitan Club
This forum is part of CMC's Optimal Health Series. Columbus may still be working toward an overall identity as a city, but leaders in healthcare have already put the region on the globe as a worldwide hub for health. Central Ohio is now home to four major hospital systems and a growing number of global leaders in therapeutics and medical technology. With the new heads of The Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center and Cardinal Health, we dive into a conversation on what the future holds for advanced healthcare in Central Ohio and around the world. Featuring: Jason Hollar, Chief...
info_outlineThis dynamic conversation challenges the conventional understanding of influence, delving into the profound impact of social media influencers on the identity and evolution of Columbus, Ohio. By examining their roles in shaping the cultural and social fabric of Columbus, we’ll uncover the subtle yet powerful ways in which our community is being redefined. We explore the responsibilities that come with this influence, encouraging a dialogue on how diverse voices can drive a more inclusive and connected future for our city.
Featuring Columbus social media influencers:
Alissa Henry, Wife, Mom, TV Personality, Content Creator, Reader, Tunner, Ohio University Alum and AKA @alissahenrytv
Morgan Pelt, Creator, Columbus Living Blog, @columbuslivingblog
And Jenny Zaerr, Brand Builder & Content Creator, Instagram’s @jennysbitesnbooze
The host is Heather Whaling, President & Founder, Geben Communication
This forum was sponsored by Geben Communication and was supported by The Ellis.
The livestream presenting sponsor was The Center for Human Kindness at The Columbus Foundation. The livestream partner was The Columbus Dispatch.
This forum was recorded before a live audience at The Ellis in Columbus, Ohio's historic Italian Village on March 27, 2024.