What will it take to keep millennials and Gen Z in Baton Rouge? After talking with several young leaders for our June cover story—complete with a commemorative fold-out cover—we noticed some patterns: They crave connections, culture and change.
Jeremy Beyt says he has house-shopped in many different cities. His appetite for innovation has often made him feel pulled toward the coastal hubs that are typically seen as the exclusive epicenters of the cutting edge—places like New York City or the Bay Area in California. He calls it a kind of FOMO.
But sometime around the end of the pandemic, Beyt says a conversation with a friend helped change his thinking. He was talking to Kenny Nguyen, who he cofounded the local creative and tech agency ThreeSixtyEight and its Assembly Required speaker series with. The pair got on the topic of native retention in Louisiana, and how many of the people who grow up here and choose to stay here tend to do so because it’s where their families are. “The conversation went to a place where we said: ‘What’s wrong with that? Why is that something we’re ashamed of? Why do we feel like we have to trade family for opportunity?’”
|
|
|
Building fresh opportunity in Baton Rouge is something the younger generations are passionate about, whether that means accessing quality-of-life amenities, fostering creative and entrepreneurial cultures or empowering youth.
|
|
|
Not unlike a speaker series like Assembly Required, 225 decided to build a panel of local leaders to have these conversations in our cover story. We ask them why they’re proud to stay in Baton Rouge—and what needs to change to keep future generations here for the long-haul, too.
Also in this month’s edition, find stories on Fathers on a Mission, restaurants’ unique takes on pickles, and the gold jewelry trend. Flip through it all below, and be sure to pick up the print copy on newsstands now around the Capital Region. Let us know what you think at [email protected].