Current Issue: July 2026

Features

WORKFORCE: Building the Skilled Trades: Why America Must Do More

JLL’s COO Paul Morgan dives into what it will take to shore up the skilled trade labor shortage.

RURAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: The Trust No Site Visit Can Build

Why are community engagement and trust so important to the site selection process?

AEROSPACE: Mapping Future Global Aviation Arenas

How is what’s happening on the ground affecting what’s up in the air?

A Conversation with IMD Economist Fabian Grimm

As an adjunct to Site Selection’s showcasing of the 2026 Smart City Index (SCI) published by the World Competitiveness Center at Switzerland-based IMD, Editor in Chief Adam Bruns conducted the following e-mail Q&A with IMD World Competitiveness Center Economist Fabian Grimm.

SMART CITIES: Smart City Index Finds Zurich On Top Once Again

Zurich tops the Smart City Index yet again.

A Conversation with StartupBlink CEO Eli David Rokah

Aside from the top four cities — San Francisco, New York, London and Los Angeles — the past two years have either served as beneficial boosts to startup ecosystem growth or contributed to a steady decline. Of course there are many factors that attribute to changing trends.

America’s Best Counties 2026

Projects flock to counties packed with energy, talent and good vibes.

2026 GLOBAL STARTUP ECOSYSTEM RANKINGS: AI Boom Guides U.S. Startup Ecosystem Successes

AI boom guides startup ecosystem successes in the United States and worldwide.

2026 SUSTAINABILITY RANKINGS: The USA, California And Metro Austin Top the 2026 Sustainability Rankings

Site Selection’s unique and comprehensive index has determined the top countries, U.S. states and U.S. metro areas for sustainability, with two Texas cities and two California cities topping the U.S. metro list, California pushing out Texas in the state ranking and the U.S. as the global leader.

TOP REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GROUPS

A blend of Site Selection’s proprietary project data and three indices has produced this top-performing group of regional economic development organizations.

Investment Profiles

ABILENE, TEXAS: ABILENE, TEXAS, SUPPLIES THE WORLD

In west-central Texas, Abilene is thriving and supplying businesses and investors with all the right tools to succeed. Diversifying industry is key to the city’s prospering economy.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MARYLAND: R&D Brainpower Attracts FDI Firepower

On any regular day, checking the local forecast can mean the difference between an individual’s choice of an open-toed shoe or sneaker and whether or not to opt for a jacket.

TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY: Prescription for Growth

When Eli Lilly and Company in December 2025 announced plans to invest more than $6 billion in a new active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturing facility in Huntsville, Alabama, the project immediately rewrote the state’s record books, becoming the largest private capital investment in Alabama’s history.

International

ATLANTIC CANADA: Seeing the Forest for the Trees

Creativity meets precision when it comes to Nova Scotian mass timber.

ASIA: How to Pick Your Hub

In China’s data center market, compliance now picks the site, not cost.

AFRICA: FIRST-PERSON SINGULAR FROM Senegal

Peace Corps volunteer and former Site Selection colleague Bre Rogers offers her unique perspective on economic development in Senegal.

Departments

EDITOR ’S VIEW: The Circle Of Lifelong Learning

As spring inched toward summer this year, milestones kept accumulating. Births, deaths, graduations, anniversaries of events resounding with joy or grief, all piling up like the mountain of prayer stones left at the Iron Cross along the French way of the Camino de Santiago de Compostela.