Region Q4 2021 by Renaissance Publishing

REGION Q4 2021

GNOINC.ORG

Contents

THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF GREATER NEW ORLEANS, INC. Q4 2021/VOLUME 2/NUMBER 4

Greater New Orleans, Inc. President & CEO Michael Hecht Senior Vice President of Business Development Grady Fitzpatrick Chief of Staff Rachel Shields Vice President of Brand & Marketing Matt Wolfe Research Manager Harrison Crabtree Vice President of Advancement Sara Bradford Renaissance Publishing Editor Topher Danial Art Director Ali Sullivan Account Director Meggie Schmidt Production Manager Rosa Balaguer

6 Letter from the President 8 About Greater New Orleans, Inc. 10 By the Numbers 12 Levelset Levels Up

Inside the local company’s rapid growth and monumental acquisition

16 Embracing the Global Roots of GNO

International trade emerges as a pillar of Louisiana’s economy

23 GNOrocs

GNOrocs: Developing a strong STEM Ecosystem

26 In Conversation

Elizabeth Ellison-Frost on her personal journey and professional commitments

Production Designer Meghan Rooney Chief Executive Officer Todd Matherne

28 Photo Gallery 31 Newsflash

Possibility Space

1100 Poydras St., Suite 3475 New Orleans, LA 70163 (504) 527-6900 gnoinc.org

32 Newsflash Lucid

Region is produced for Greater New Orleans, Inc. by Renaissance Publishing, LLC 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123 Metairie, LA 70005 (504) 828-1380 | Fax (504) 828-1385 myneworleans.com | bizneworleans.com

TO ADVERTISE

Contact Meggie Schmidt at (504) 830-7220 or email Meggie@myneworleans.com Copyright 2021 Region, GNO, Inc., and Renaissance Publishing, LLC. No part of this publication may be reproduced without consent of the publisher.

REGION Q4 2021

LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

eason’s greetings! People ask me all the time, “How are things going?” Despite the many challenges of the past year, once I start talking about the wins Greater New Orleans is tallying, I find it hard to stop. Looking back, 2021 has been a remarkably productive year. In Business Development, GNO, Inc. and partners helped bring in over 1,000 new jobs and over $660M in investment in a range of projects including video game company Possibility Space, manufacturing firm Laitram, a bio-project at Chalmette Refining, and even a new airline, Breeze Airways, that placed an operations hub at MSY. It was also a remarkable year for entrepreneurship at GNO, Inc., with over a dozen companies enjoying lucrative exits, including Levelset for $500M and Lucid for $1.1B, our region’s first “unicorn” (a startup valued at over $1B). Many of these companies were supported by GNO, Inc. and the GNO, Inc. nonprofit investment spinoff, the New Orleans Startup Fund. Public Policy enjoyed a landmark year, with passage of legislation and a constitutional amendment that will lower Louisiana’s state income taxes, to the fourthlowest in America. The Wall Street Journal called this change “Louisiana’s Tax Reform Breakthrough.” GNO, Inc.’s workforce efforts continued to grow, with the successful launch of the GNO, Inc. HBCU Startup Internship Program to encourage more entrepreneurs of color, and the launch of the next cohort of the “GNOu” Mechatronics Apprenticeship Program, a German-style work/study initiative. GNO, Inc. ended the year by being one of only 11% of applicants selected by the Department of Commerce as a finalist for a national $100M grant program for innovative cluster growth. GNO, Inc. is managing a coalition of over 30 partners in an effort to make South Louisiana a leader in the energy transition, based on offshore wind power and the production of green hydrogen for industrial use. There’s much more, but let me end here, and simply give thanks: to the remarkable staff of GNO, Inc., the supportive Board, our generous investors, and all of you who make our progress possible. Onward,

MICHAEL HECHT GNO, Inc. President & CEO

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IN A RUSH? WE KNOW: we’ve got a lot to say. Skim through the big concepts by looking out for our GNO Highlights.

ABOUT GREATER NEW ORLEANS, INC.

RELATIONSHIPS. RELEVANCE. RESULTS.

reater New Orleans, Inc. (GNO, Inc.) is the economic development nonprofit for the 10-parish region of southeast Louisiana. GNO, Inc. is built on a simple but broad mission: To create a region with a thriving economy and excellent quality of life for everyone. The key is GNO, Inc.’s two-pronged approach to economic growth: by focusing on business development, the alliance aims to attract, retain and develop businesses that will employ our future workforce, propelling our economy forward and upward. This initiative is coupled with a concurrent nurturing of the business environment: by proposing, promoting and facilitating policies that improve conditions for business operations, GNO, Inc. ensures that businesses and corporate leaders are

positioned for long-lasting success. For GNO, Inc., it is not enough to simply serve the community: we must also be a part of it. Real influence and significant change starts from within, and the alliance’s presence in the community is evident and expanding. Working together with the business community, regional stakeholders and all levels of government allows GNO, Inc. to coordinate, consolidate and catalyze action on key issues and opportunities, effectively maximizing job and wealth creation and creating systemic impact. From workforce development and coastal stabilization to fiscal and criminal justice reform, GNO, Inc. is driven by results. It’s helping to create a robust and growing middle class and, in the process, ensuring our region’s continued prosperity.

PARISHES OF SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA

JEFFERSON ORLEANS PLAQUEMINES ST. BERNARD ST. CHARLES ST. JAMES

LOUISIANA STATE GOVERNMENT Louisiana Economic Development

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST ST. TAMMANY

PARISH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS

STAKEHOLDERS

Our Investors Parish Government

Jefferson Orleans

Colleges/ Universities

Plaquemines St. Bernard

Legislators

St. Charles

Business Community

St. James

Nonprofits

St. John the Baptist

Influencers

St. Tammany Tangipahoa Washington

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MEDIA

PUBLIC

PROSPECTS

TANGIPAHOA WASHINGTON

BY THE NUMBERS

Greater New Orleans BY THE NUMBERS Q4 2021

An economic snapshot of Greater New Orleans’ 10-parish market EMPLOYMENT & ECONOMY STATISTICS

POPULATION

1,454,796 31% of Louisiana’s population resides in Greater New Orleans

EMPLOYMENT STATISTICS

$49,296

Metro Average Annual Wages SOURCE: U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS, Q1 2021

SECTOR OVERVIEW: TRANSPORTATION & LOGISTICS

SOURCE: U.S. CENSUS BUREAU, 2020

JOBS

26,646 AVERAGE SALARY

ECONOMY

$63,589

46,070

659,217

SOURCE: BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS,

SOURCE: U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS,

NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED, Q1 2021

NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED 8/21

Private Establishments

Civilian Labor Force

GDP

$2.9B SOURCE: EMSI

59,982

6.5%

SOURCE: EMSI OCT 2021 DATA

SOURCE: U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS,

Unique Job Postings

Regional Unemployment NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED 8/21

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FAST FACTS: TRANSPORTATION & TRADE

TRADE

$17.8B

Value of Exports from the New Orleans Metro Area

ANNOUNCEMENTS RECENT ANNOUNCEMENTS Intralox’s $60 million investment Gov. John Bel Edwards and Intralox President Edel Blanks announced the company is investing $60 million to expand its Hammond manufacturing facility. The investment will more than double the facility’s current footprint, adding 300,000 square feet to the 130,000 square-foot building. With the expansion, the company will create 425 direct new jobs, increasing average annual payroll by $10 million. Louisiana’s tax reform breakthrough In November, Louisiana passed Constitutional Amendment #2, with 54% of the vote. The move makes Louisiana’s top income tax rate the lowest in the South, and the fourth lowest nationally (amongst states that collect income tax). GNO, Inc. and partners across the state have long advocated for this reform, which will make Louisiana’s taxes lower, simpler, fairer, and more stable. The WSJ calls passage of Constitutional Amendment #2 “Louisiana’s Tax Reform Breakthrough,” and says that “the tax reform should make the Pelican State more competitive for business investment.”

largest U.S. metro measured by value of exports SOURCE: U.S. CENSUS BUREAU;

COST OF LIVING & REAL ESTATE

OVERALL COST OF LIVING GNO Region: 99.3 U.S. Average: 100 SOURCE: EMSI

REAL ESTATE OFFICE Local Vacancy: 7.6% National Vacancy: 12.3% Local Rent: $19.59/ft2 National Rent: $34.00/ft2

U.S. EXPORTS BY METROPOLITAN AREA, 2021 Q1 & Q2

Local Inventory: 53M ft2 TRAFFIC

INDUSTRIAL Local Vacancy: 3.4% National Vacancy: 4.4%

Hours each year spent per person in traffic congestion

Local Rent: $7.90/ft2 National Rent: $9.60/ft2

That’s 20 hours less than the national average

Local Inventory: 81.4M ft2

SOURCE: INRIX TRAFFIC SCORE CARD, 2019

SOURCE: COSTAR 2021 Q4

RANKINGS RECENT RANKINGS Louisiana is #5 in USA for Growth in Digital Entrepreneurs —Amazon New Orleans is ranked #1 for Logistics and FTZ Imports —Business Facilities #1 State for Workforce Development/Talent Attraction (FastStart, 11th consecutive year) —Business Facilities Louisiana Earns “State of the Year” —Southern Business and Development New Orleans Has Youngest Entrepreneurs in USA —LendingTree New Orleans is the #4 Most Entrepreneurial Metro in USA —Cloud Kitchens

GNO, Inc.’s mission is to create a Greater New Orleans with a thriving economy and an excellent quality of life, for everyone. For more information about the market, or help with your business, please contact our Research and Business Development team: Harrison Crabtree Senior Associate, Research and Policy hcrabtree@gnoinc.org • 504.527.6987

Grady Fitzpatrick Senior Vice President of Business Development gfitzpatrick@gnoinc.org • 504.239.3525

*Due to data collection methods, previous GNO By the Numbers are not directly comparable

GNOINC.ORG

BUSINESS WINS

Levelset Levels Up

Inside the local company’s rapid growth and monumental acquisition BY SUZANNE PFEFFERLE TAFUR

uring the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Scott Wolfe, Jr.—a licensed attorney who previously practiced construction law—witnessed firsthand the challenges contractors faced when it came to getting paid. The New Orleanian searched for solutions to solve payment inequities in construction and set the foundation for what is now known as Levelset, a software company used by thousands of contractors and suppliers nationwide, to make construction payments easier and more predictable. “Payment in construction is dramatically different than it is in any other industry, where you want to buy something, and you give them money, and you get that good or service right away,”

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says Gretchen Lynn, Levelset’s vice president of customer experience. “Whereas in construction, you could wait up to 80 days before you get payment. And if there are people who you have to pay, if there are supplies you need to buy, it’s a complex, unfair process across the board for everybody involved.” Levelset has since expanded its reach beyond the legal aspects of helping people in construction manage that complex system, to helping people in construction manage everything that ties back to payment, said Lynn. This past fall, the company was acquired by Procore, a market leader in construction project management, for $500 million. At the time, the acquisition of Levelset represented the largest ven-

“I think the asterisks on the Idea Village experience was, number one, getting Scott to dream a little bigger than maybe what he would have otherwise dreamed,” says Martin Roth, Levelset’s chief revenue officer. “And then number two, opening up the idea that we could take outside capital and grow this thing inorganically to be a big opportunity. It planted these seeds for a vision that we ultimately set out to go build.”

ture capital-backed outcome in Louisiana (until local tech firm Lucid sold for $1.1 billion in October). On a national level, Levelset’s sale is the second largest venture-backed construction software exit. The company has experienced rapid growth since its establishment, and while founding employees joke this has led “to literal gray hair,” they would not have it any other way, nor in any other setting aside from New Orleans.

Levelset employees from the U.S. visit Cairo. Opposing page: Scott Wolfe, Jr., Levelset’s founder and CEO, announces to staff in September that Procore signed a definitive agreement to acquire Levelset for $500 million.

Heading east, then west In 2015, zlien incorporated software group, ZLABS—based in Cairo, Egypt—and continues to operate from those offices today. Hisham Younis, Levelset’s chief technology officer, is from Cairo. “I’ve worked with Scott since 2008, on the very early prototypes of what later became zlien and then later Levelset,” he explains, noting that more than half of the company’s engineering team members currently work in the Egyptian capital. “When the company was founded officially in 2012, we started to hire people full time in Cairo to help with the software development for zlien.” Younis says that even before the pandemic, when Zoom became a part of everyday life for most folks, Levelset possessed a strong videoconferencing culture. “We’ve always been very inclusive, figuring out how to make sure that people in different geographies, and from different cultures, are included in everything that we do,” he says. During that time, employees from Cairo would visit New Orleans—and New Orleanians would head east—resulting in a rich cultural exchange between two offices, nearly 7,000 miles apart. After acquiring controlling interest in ZLABS, zlien continued to expand in New Orleans—and further into the United States.

The right idea In November of 2011, Scott Wolfe, Jr. launched zlien, a corporation that helps “supply and construction companies” reduce their credit risk and default receivables through the management of mechanics lien and bond claim compliance. A little less than two years later, Wolfe joined The Idea Village’s central class of entrepreneurs-in-training. During the annual New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW), Idea Village and TPG Capital founding partner Jim Coulter hosted the Coulter IDEApitch, an invitation-only investment pitch, featuring select high-growth entrepreneurs in the New Orleans region presenting their ventures to world-class investors. In March of 2014, zlien was named the NOEW Idea Week Big Idea Pitch Winner. As the winner, the zlien team traveled to San Francisco on a TPG Capital sponsored trip and met with potential venture investors, including Altos Ventures, which funded zlien’s Series A round with $5 million.

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In January of 2017, zlien announced a $10 million Series B round of financing led by Austin-based S3 Ventures with support from return backers Altos Ventures and Brick & Mortar Ventures, among others. In June 2018, it opened an office in the Texas city. “We started the Austin office because we were raising capital from an Austin-based venture capital firm, and so there was kind of an anchor there,” says Bradford Walker, Levelset’s chief financial officer. “Austin has a lot of tech talent, and so as we continued to grow and were looking for more talent, Austin was a great place to find that.” While expanding on an international level, zlien deepened its NOLA roots. In the spring of 2019, the corporation opened a second Lower Garden District office—this time on Magazine Street. (The first office is situated on Josephine Street.) At that point, zlien rebranded to Levelset and crossed the 100-employee milestone.

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THE NEW ORLEANS FACTOR The founders of Levelset say the Crescent City played a key role in facilitating the corporation’s growth, partially because the original employees were, put bluntly, inexperienced, which ultimately

contributed to a resilient company culture in which all players were focused on constantly learning and problem solving. “We were able to be very scrappy in how we approached the business, and I think that set in a culture and an operat-

Levelset employees used resourcefulness when scaling, and it remains a part of their company culture today.

ing style that is still very much a part of our organization today,” says Roth, adding that the cost of living is inexpensive in New Orleans, in comparison to other metropolitan areas around the country. But still, he says, scaling in New Orleans hasn’t always been a smooth journey, and the company had to tap into tech hubs like Austin, Texas to recruit higher level talent. “Recruiting people to New Orleans can be a challenge,” Roth says. “As you scale, and you get to 150, 200 employees, you start looking for people who have experience running a sales team, a customer success team, or an engineering team. We needed to tap into a different talent pool to get employees who already knew how to do a certain thing. We had coached a lot of people into their roles, but you can’t scale forever by coaching everybody up in the role.” Younis seconds Roth’s theory that scrappiness spawned Levelset’s unique set of values. “If we were founded in a place like San Francisco, or some other tech hub, our culture would probably have been very different,” he says. “But scarcity breeds resourcefulness. And we didn’t have the abundance of skills and experience in the city, so we have to resort to other things, like grit and resilience.” In August of 2021, Levelset continued its rapid growth and crossed the 300-employee milestone. The company successfully scaled to meet the demand. “As we continued to build, we saw more products to build,” says Walker. “As we build more pieces, our eyes and our ambition get bigger. We start hiring people to work on the data in new and bigger ways. Growth begets growth.” Construction is a $13 trillion global industry, says Younis. “As we work in it, we continue to see that there are still more opportunities, so we continue to expand the scope of what we’re working on,” he says. With growth comes growing pains, but that’s not a bad thing, Levelset employ-

ees say. (In fact, it’s often exhilarating.) “To have this really big ambition to take on a really huge opportunity, requires an incredible amount of sheer belief and faith,” Walker says. “That is the nature of what we’re doing. We’re supposed to go uncomfortably fast. And we know that sometimes we’re going to get things a little bit wrong, but we’re mostly going to get it right.” Roth describes his eight-plus years with Levelset as a “never-ending cycle of professional challenges and accomplishments; getting better at skills and taking on more responsibility.” Levelset’s acquisition by Procore, for example, marks the start of a new experience. Procore Technologies, a construction management software company based in California, does not serve the same market as Levelset, Roth explains. Procure helps firms increase project efficiency and accountability by streamlining project com-

munications, minimizing costly risks and delays, and ultimately boosting profits. “What we do is very different from what Procore does. There’s not much overlap between our solutions,” Roth says. “We have a lot of opportunities under that umbrella to expand our reach, serve more customers, and build more products.” Levelset will continue to operate as is, with the goal of hitting revenue targets, scaling teams, and growing, before officially merging with Procore—likely in 2023. But even then, they will not leave New Orleans behind. If anything, they will help the city prosper. “We look at this as a catalyst for the New Orleans tech ecosystem,” says Roth. “Hopefully we can accelerate more companies getting funded here and scaling here. We’re not going anywhere. We’ll continue to hire another hundred people or so in New Orleans, over the course of the next year. That’s a commitment to the city.”

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INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Embracing the Global Roots of Greater New Orleans International trade emerges as a pillar of Louisiana’s economy BY DREW HAWKINS

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INTERNATIONAL TRADE

reater New Orleans has been a major player in international trade for a long time, with roots that can be traced back to 1682, when Robert de La Salle petitioned France’s King Louis XIV to construct a port in the region. Since then, Louisiana has grown to become one of the world’s leaders in global trade. Today, the state is home to 30 ports, which are responsible for more

than $33 billion in annual earnings and bring in over $2.4 billion in state taxes and $1.8 billion in local taxes. Additionally, last year, Louisiana-made goods and services were sold to customers in over 196 countries, resulting in exports totalling more than $63 billion and supporting some 3,500 businesses. The growth isn’t static, either. International trade continues to offer tremendous economic opportunities for Greater New Orleans and the surrounding region, and the reason is simple: location, location, location. “We are perfectly suited,” says Greg Rusovich, Chairman of Louisiana Board of International Commerce (LaBIC). “We have the Mississippi River running from Canada to Louisiana. We have six ‘Class A’ railroads that come right into the New Orleans region for distribution of products nationally. We have everything going for us to be the leader in global trade.” Launched in 2011, LaBIC is a part of the Louisiana Economic Development (LED) that’s focused on advancing the state’s international commerce initiatives. Rusovich says that before then, there wasn’t a unified structure focused on growing foreign investment and international trade. “As a region, we’ve really always had three foundational industries: energy, tourism and hospitality, and then international trade,” Rusovich says. Trade means more than just goods coming and going. It also means jobs for Louisianans ranging from stevedores loading and unloading on docks to truck drivers, forklift operators and administrative employees, in addition to warehousing and logistical employees. All in all, trade creates more than 539,000 jobs in the state. That’s one out of every five jobs. International trade and logistics also play a critical role in the national economy and supply chain. “Over 95 percent of the cargo entering the United States arrives by vessel to more than 360 commercial ports,” says J. Edwin Webb, CEO of the World Trade Center New Orleans (WTCNO), an organization focused on accelerating the region’s business growth through international trade. Louisiana’s ports are a vital part of those efforts. “All ports are important,” Webb says. “The Port of New Orleans is the sixth largest cruise

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INTERNATIONAL TRADE

port in the United States. Its partner ports, which include the Port of South Louisiana, Port of Saint Bernard, Plaquemines Port Harbor and Terminal District, among others, each play an important role in keeping Louisiana an ‘open for your international trade’ resource.” But don’t just take his word for it. In the international trade industry, money talks—none more so than foreign direct investment (FDI). Nationwide, FDI contributes to productivity growth, generates U.S. exports, and creates high paying jobs for American workers. In 2019 alone, FDI was responsible for 7.9 million jobs in the U.S., $71.4 billion in research and development expenditures, and accounted for 24% of all U.S. goods exports. Foreign investment is also a clear indicator that other companies (and countries) see the value in a particular region. A great example is the airliner British Air launching nonstop flights from London to New Orleans. “One of the biggest wins for the region over the last few years was British Air putting in a direct flight,” Rusovich says. “You don’t think of trade, but you think of investment. That further fostered New Orleans being the leader for European visitors coming to the city, and of course, it fostered trade.” However, foreign investment alone won’t build a business environment that can attract and sustain an expansion in international trade. For that, you need local dollars and commitment. Both Rusovich and Webb point to a newly proposed container facility in Violet, Louisiana as a key initiative. The Port of New Orleans’ current container facility is on the other side of the Mississippi Bridge, which lacks sufficient air draft to allow for the larger “megaships” of today’s shipping industry to access the facility. “They just can’t fit,” says Rusovich. “You have no choice but to move south and closer to the mouth of the river.” The “Louisiana International Terminal at Violet,” as the proposed container facility is set to be called, would allow the larger ships to easily access the region and would “announce to the world that Louisiana will be a formidable player in the global trade of the future.” Rusovich says it’s been frustrating over the years to watch other Gulf Coast states organize around and support their ports and international trade industries. For example, many states had a single port authority and well-funded outreach to the global community for foreign investment long before Louisiana did. But since the founding of state initiatives like LaBIC and other organizations such as the WTCNO, those gaps have been closing, and with the Violet container terminal, the state is set to expand its reach even further and attract even greater investment. “We can have the megaships coming into Violet, Loui-

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siana right from the Panama Canal,” says Rusovich. “We want them stopping in Violet. We don’t want them going straight to Savannah or Houston.” Louisiana is poised to become an even bigger leader in the world of international trade, and we already have much of the infrastructure it takes to support such an expansion. The Port of South Louisiana is currently one of the largest trade ports in the nation, handling more than 238 million tons of goods per year, giving it the number two spot on the list of the country’s top tonnage ports. Local industry leaders like Webb and Rusovich say that the time is now for the state to really focus on investing in trade and giving the industry what it needs to continue to grow. “Leadership in Louisiana has long recognized the power and the growth potential of international trade,” Webb says. “However, we need to get down to business and allow the Port of New Orleans to do its business and compete for Louisiana.” One thing’s for sure: international trade will continue to be a key driver for the state’s economy, and as new investments and innovations are made, the Greater New Orleans region’s identity as a vital player of the global trade system is only going to grow stronger.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

The Ports of Greater New Orleans

A look at the four ports in the region and how they each play a vital role in trade logistics.

Port of New Orleans This year celebrating its 125th anniversary, Port NOLA generates $100 million in annual revenue through rail, cargo, cruises and industrial real estate. Within its immediate jurisdiction of Jefferson, Orleans and St. Bernard parishes, Port NOLA’s economic impact includes more than 19,000 jobs and $3.9 billion of output. Its main imports are steel, coffee, furniture, natural rubber, forest products and non-ferrous metals, while its main exports are plastic resins, frozen poultry, paper and pulp. As Louisiana’s only international container port for the past 50 years, and now with strategic alignment with the New Orleans Public Belt Railroad, Port NOLA is positioned to meet future demand with a second container terminal. SOURCES: PORTNOLA.COM, GATEWAY REVIEW 2021

Port of South Louisiana Located in LaPlace, Louisiana, the Port of South Louisiana’s jurisdiction includes St. James, St. John the Baptist and St. Charles parishes. It is ranked first in total domestic trade and second in total foreign trade, and in 2020 reported a total throughput of 250,450,883 short tons, largely composed of crude oil and soybean throughput. Port of South Louisiana is also the owner of the Globalplex Intermodal Terminal, operated by Associated Terminals, which facilitates handling and storage of bulk, breakbulk and containerized cargo, in addition to conveying cargo via ship to barge, truck or intermodal rail transfer. This port is the grantee of FTZ 124, ranked #4 in both merchandise received (warehouse/distribution) and merchandise exported (warehouse/ distribution), according to the FTZ Board’s Annual (2020) Report To Congress. SOURCES: PORTSL.COM, TRADE.GOV

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INTERNATIONAL TRADE

St. Bernard Port, Harbor and Terminal District With a total footprint of 430 acres across four terminals in Arabi, Meraux, Chalmette and Violet, the St. Bernard Port, Harbor and Terminal District transports cargo via rail, water, road and air. In 2020, the port handled 7.4 million tons of bulk, breakbulk and general cargo, with main commodities including metallic ores, fertilizer, and grains and feeds. In addition, the port, along with its tenants and patrons, make an estimated local economic impact of $325 million every year. The St. Bernard Port supports other local industries through strategic partnerships, with upcoming projects including a warehouse for new tenant American Sugar Refinery, leasing space to Chalmette Refinery for the expansion of a green bio-diesel storage facility, and the potential new construction of a coke storage facility with Rain CII Carbon LLC. SOURCES: STBERNARDPORT.COM, ST. BERNARD PORT, HARBOR AND TERMINAL DISTRICT ANNUAL REPORT 2021

Plaquemines Port Harbor & Terminal District The 13th largest tonnage port in the country, Plaquemines Port is the closest energy port to the Eastern Gulf and features more than 80 miles of deep draft access. The port’s primary inbound cargo includes oil, coke, phosphate and petroleum products, while its primary outbound cargo includes soybeans, coal, wheat and grain-corn. In 2018, Plaquemines Port reported 51,000,000 of overall annual tonnage and revenue of $8,300,000. Its impact on international trade stands to grow further in light of the November 2021 announcement that Plaquemines Port is partnering with APM Terminals for the development and operation of a 50’ deep state-of-the-art container terminal which will span an estimated 5,200 feet of Mississippi River frontage. SOURCES: PORTOFPLAQUEMINES.COM

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STEM EDUCATION

GNOrocs: Developing a strong STEM Ecosystem Louisiana Invests in STEM Education BY DREW HAWKINS

hen it comes to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education (STEM), our region is shooting for the moon. The Louisiana legislature has appropriated millions of dollars to advance regional STEM education efforts throughout the state. The funding increase is the latest development in legisla-

tive efforts that started in 2017 with the drafting and ultimate passage of Act 392, which provided the groundwork to determine who would sit on the LaSTEM Advisory Council. Now, the STEM Network is fully established and moving towards the goal of providing “cradle to grave” STEM educational opportunities throughout the state.

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STEM EDUCATION

“The benefits to the state are already being realized,” says Dr. Clint Coleman, program administrator of LaSTEM at the Louisiana Board of Regents, a state agency that coordinates all public higher education in Louisiana. He points to successful programs such as virtual summer camps and regional collaborative projects that are bringing STEM opportunities to the communities across the state. “This summer, our NASA Astro camps had hundreds of ‘in person’ and virtual participants from all over Louisiana. Students from 31 other states and 10 countries participated.” In addition, new STEM outreach programs in areas such as drones, robotics and e-sports are being established at regional STEM centers across Louisiana this year, illustrating a forward-looking focus as well. “These types of applied learning opportunities will ultimately move the needle for STEM education in the state,” Coleman says. In 2020, LaSTEM received its first allocated funding , which was used to start up nine regional STEM centers around the state, including one at GNO, Inc., which represents “Region 1” and includes Orleans, Jefferson, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James, and St. John the Baptist parishes. The “Greater New Orleans Region One Center for STEM, also known as GNOrocs” aims to reduce the STEM gap within our community by creating an interconnected ecosystem with K-12, higher education, and business and industry to develop a robust, talented pipeline of highly skilled workers that will retain and attract business to the Greater New Orleans region. In 2021, the funding was doubled to provide additional support across the state’s STEM Centers. “Louisiana’s focus on STEM education is exactly what our great state needs to continue moving forward,”

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says Coleman. “Current and future jobs in the state will require employees to understand the technology and think critically on the job.” The state’s renewed focus on STEM education has benefits that extend beyond just pure economics. In addition to boosting student interest in science, technology, engineering and math to meet the needs of an evolving workforce, it’ll also increase the number of women and people of color with degrees in STEM-related industries, closing the opportunity gap for underrepresented and underserved populations. “Women are very underrepresented in these fields,” says Sharon Hewitt, the State Senator who sponsored the bill that created the Louisiana Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Advisory Council. A mechanical engineering graduate, Hewitt was a STEM student herself. She says that women only make up 16 percent of engineering, 12 percent of physics, and 23 percent of graduates. Men account for 33 percent of STEM graduates as compared to 10 percent for women. Hewitt says these inequities start in early childhood. “We know that part of the problem is we can’t just start at the high school level,” she says. “You really have to start at the elementary level in creating an interest and building the skills.” That’s exactly what LaSTEM and GNOrocs aim to accomplish. “We see STEM education more broadly,” Coleman says. “There are three major categories our STEM Centers focus on: K-12th grade, college and university, and the workforce. Prior to LaSTEM, there were only unofficial channels to communicate and collaborate with like-minded individuals. This created an unintentional silo effect, where the great STEM work at individual schools and community organizations was unable to grow.” One of GNOrocs’s successful STEM

partners in the region is STEM NOLA, founded in 2013 by New Orleans native and former tenured Tulane University engineering professor Dr. Calvin Mackie. “We’re trying to make New Orleans ground zero for hands-on STEM engagement for this country, if not for the world,” Mackie says. Mackie says he was inspired to start the organization after teaching STEM to his own children. “My son came home one day and he said, ‘Daddy I don’t like science’ and I said, ‘Son, we have to fix that.’ We started doing STEM in the garage on Saturdays. Then my friends started bringing their kids over, and my neighbors started bringing their kids, and before you know it we had 20 kids in the garage doing STEM.” After seeing how successful his little garage operation was going, Mackie decided to expand. “I realized that maybe we had something to offer the broader community,” he says. He and his wife, Tracy, put up $100,000 of their own money and started STEM NOLA. Their first event was in New Orleans East for 100 students. Their organization has since expanded to hundreds of students and is currently renovating a 42,000 square foot building into a STEM Innovation hub. They’ve also expanded their capability to reach more eager students. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization pivoted to virtual classes, where they engaged with kids from 47 states and five countries, including Ghana, Senegal, and the UK. Mackie says the model created by STEM NOLA is “scalable, transferable and reproducible, but more importantly, sustainable.” He points to the fact that organizations around the world are already looking to replicate their system as evidence of their success. They recently received a grant from the U.S. Embassy in Tanzania to create the equivalent of a “STEM Tanzania.” In October, New Orleans May-

STEM EDUCATION

or Latoya Cantrell selected Bayou Phoenix LLC as the developer of the former Six Flags and Jazzland site. Partnering with STEM NOLA, the Bayou Phoenix plan includes a STEM education center, as well as a hotel, waterpark, amusement park, sports complex and a warehouse and distribution center. Just four miles away from the STEM Innovation hub location, the new education center will fit into what Mackie calls a “STEM district,” which he said will be the “most expansive effort in America to bring STEM education to Black and Brown children

and adults.” Needless to say, he has big plans for the project. “We’re looking to create the ‘Epcot’ of STEM,” he says of the proposed education center, which he calls an “edu-tainment facility.” “We are trying to build a futuristic site where people in the region can come and be exposed to STEM. Let them be entertained at the same time by the environment in which they live, and let them see the possibilities of the future in careers while having fun.” The Greater New Orleans region is home to many strong STEM ecosystem partners, eager to create a strong

workforce for the jobs of today, and of tomorrow. With the success of STEM NOLA, a diverse set of STEM focused non-profits, and a robust higher education community in the region means GNO, Inc. already has a strong foundation in which to build upon with the work of the regional STEM center, GNOrocs. As access to these resources is expanded, Louisiana will cultivate a more fair and equitable educational environment, inspiring a new generation of young minds and producing a workforce ready to handle the ever-evolving challenges of the modern world.

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PERSONAL PROFILE

In Conversation with Elizabeth Ellison-Frost The Community Relations Manager for Chalmette Refining reflects on her personal journey and her company’s commitment to St. Bernard Parish

Q: How did you get started on your career path? Were you always interested in the oil and energy industry? I grew up in the Lafayette area. My dad was a geologist, and my two brothers own a small oil exploration company, so you could say oil’s in my blood. Before coming to New Orleans, I was a landman in southwest Louisiana and then went to work for ExxonMobil here in Chalmette. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Chalmette’s Public & Government Affairs Department needed additional help with community outreach, so I volunteered to assist. I worked with many talented and community-minded people on the St. Bernard Citizens’ Recovery Committee. My love for communicating led me to start writing and editing the refinery’s employee newsletter. These and other community outreach activities at the time led me to change gears and become part of the Public & Government Affairs side of the refining industry. When PBF Energy acquired Chalmette in 2015, I was promoted and became the Community Relations Manager.

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Q: You’ve worn many different hats since joining Chalmette Refining. How has each role prepared you for the next one? After ExxonMobil offered me the opportunity to switch fields and join their Public & Government Affairs Department, I honed my skills in several roles in the Baton Rouge and Greater New Orleans areas. I traveled extensively as a member of ExxonMobil’s Regional Response Team, training, participating in drills, and learning all aspects of responding to emergencies in Canada, South America, the Caribbean, and the U.S. Today, I wear many hats as the Community Relations Manager, as I am responsible for employee and community messaging and outreach, government relations, emergency response and media contact, to name a few of my roles. I am able to use my love of writing, politics, and public service every day – so I guess you could say I have my dream job.

PERSONAL PROFILE

Q: Outside of public engagement in your professional world, you’ve personally served as Chair of the St. Bernard Chamber of Commerce. Why is staying active in the community so important to you and to PBF? PBF Energy is a great company to work for, where leaders emphasize integrity and refining fundamentals such as maintaining safe, reliable and environmentally responsible operations that benefit our workforce, community and environment. Giving back to the community and making sure that we earn the right to operate in St. Bernard and the Greater New Orleans area is one of the core tenets of PBF’s Operating Doctrine. I, personally, love connecting with our neighbors in the greater community around the refinery. So many people in the community are my heroes. They have so much passion for making this wonderful place where we live and work even better. Their commitment inspires me to want to do more.

Q: What is your proudest career accomplishment so far? I was at a conference and got a “shout out” about being a mentor and friend to some of the women panelists during a session. That touched me so much; I knew then that if I can make that kind of difference, I know I must be doing something right in this world. I also was very honored last year to be inducted into New Orleans City Business’ Women of the Year Hall of Fame (2020).

Q: Are there any past obstacles you look back on as particularly challenging, and how did you overcome them? One of the toughest times in my career was after the sale of the refinery to PBF Energy was announced in 2015. At that time, I was planning the refinery’s 100th Anniversary celebration and at the same time had to begin preparing for the sale and transition to PBF Energy. That was a lot of work, plus I was unsure what was going to happen with my job. I believe we employees all had the fear of the unknown. But PBF Energy offered every single employee a position. We celebrated the 100th Anniversary with employees and retirees one week before the sale. The next week, we had a huge celebration that I also planned as we became part of the PBF family.

Q: In addition to a bachelor’s degree in political science, you have a master’s degree in creative writing. How do those skills help you in telling PBF’s story to the community? I recently read a great quote that sums up what the study of Political Science is in a few words: “Those who choose this field are interested in the greater good of all citizens.” That’s my job – making sure the refinery earns the right to operate in our community through philanthropy, volunteerism, and operating safely and with environmental responsibility for both the community and our employees. I’ve always been a storyteller at heart—I wrote my first “book” at age 6. The sharing and telling of our stories is how we get to know each other – getting to know and work alongside the community is the best part of my job.

Q: COVID-19 left virtually no industry untouched. What changes have you seen in oil and energy, and what do you think is next for the industry as a whole? Although we learn from yesterday and focus on today, we also plan for the future. Right now at Chalmette Refining, we are very excited about our proposed Renewable Diesel Project (RDU). The RDU will convert animal and plant-based feedstocks into renewable diesel. Green Energy projects such as this can help create stability for our workforce, add value to our facility and have a positive impact for the community.

Q: What’s the best piece of advice you could offer young professionals right now? Be open to new experiences and challenges both at work and in your private life—take on tasks no one else wants to do. You will learn and experience more than others, which may lead to a lifelong hobby or your dream job (see my answer to Question 2).

Q: What are you excited about right now? I am so excited that in-person community activities are starting to come back; that I can attend meetings and visit with people in the community, live and in person instead of via computer. Video conferencing was great for keeping connected during the pandemic, but there is nothing like that person-toperson contact. That’s where you truly get to know people – chit-chatting about each other’s lives before or after a Board Meeting, or while volunteering at a community event such as Tour da Parish or Special Olympics.

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PHOTO GALLERY

James Clements of Canadian Pacific speaking to SOLA Super Region leaders and Governor John Bel Edwards about their acquisition of KCS, rail service throughout the region, and prospects for BR-NO passenger service

Highlights from Emerge Summit 2021, the Gulf Coast’s premiere annual conference for young professionals. This year’s conference was held December 2 & 3, 2021 at the Conference Centre on 11.

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Members of the GNO, Inc. staff participated in an informative and comprehensive tour of Jefferson Parish that included areas of the Westbank, Fat City, and Bucktown. The trip highlighted the parish’s rich transportation infrastructure including large port operations, major railways, and Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport.

PHOTO GALLERY

In partnership with J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., GNO, Inc. hosted Black Entrepreneur’s Day to celebrate Black entrepreneurship and empowerment on November 26. A group of local companies showcased their products and discussed business challenges and successes, while attendees learned about the resources available in our region.

GNO, Inc. was a recipient of three awards at the IEDC 2021 Excellence Awards Ceremony.

The GNO Mechatronics Apprenticeship Program welcomed the third cohort into the program on November 19. The apprenticeship program continues to produce strong talent pipelines for business and industry partners in our region.

Winter Networking Night with the New Orleans Food and Beverage group at The Shop At The CAC on December 8. Attendees socialized while sampling local food and beverage companies’ products such as: Brass Roots Food, El Guapo Bitters, Top Pop, Big Easy Bucha, Kingfish Cider, and Jambalaya Girl. We also heard from Big Easy Bucha’s founder and CEO about their recent acquisition and homegrown success story.

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NEWSFLASH

Gov. John Bel Edwards and video game development executive Jeff Strain announced the launch of Possibility Space, a game development studio that will build large-scale video games for a global audience. Possibility Space becomes the latest addition to Louisiana’s growing interactive entertainment cluster and will create 75 new permanent jobs in Louisiana with an average annual salary of $100,000, plus benefits. Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project will result in 90 new indirect jobs, for a total of 165 new jobs for New Orleans and the Southeast Region.

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NEWSFLASH

Lucid, a marketing technology company that was founded in New Orleans in 2010, announced in October that they have sold to the Swedish company Cint in a deal worth $1.1B of cash and stock. This makes Lucid the first post-Katrina “unicorn” — a startup with a $1B+ valuation — to emerge from Greater New Orleans. Lucid currently has 550 employees globally, including offices in London, Delhi, the Middle East and Africa; more than 130 employees are located in New Orleans.

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