Contact: Adam Bruns, Editor in Chief and Head of Publications
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adam.bruns@conway.com

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www.siteselection.com

Press Release

Top counties had top megaprojects in common, including major investments in the semiconductor and energy sectors. In the overall category, Texas counties once again claimed four of the top 10 spots, as corporate facility investment trends aligned with population trends. The per-capita top 10 were more widely distributed by geography, with Georgia and Kentucky claiming two counties apiece. As in last year’s inaugural rankings, foreign direct investment played a significant role. And, as pointed out by Editor Emeritus Mark Arend, the top counties align well with top-performing metro areas: Both Harris County and Waller County in Texas are part of the thriving Houston metro area, for example.

In the same July issue, Site Selection also has released its 2024 Sustainability Rankings, based on unique sets of criteria applied to countries, U.S. states and U.S. metro areas. This year Canada, the United States and Sweden top the magazine’s list of Top 10 countries. Texas jumps up to No. 1 among U.S. states, followed by California, Colorado, last year’s No. 1 North Carolina and Arizona. And metro Austin, Texas, claims No. 1 among U.S. metros for the third straight year, just above the greater metro areas of Dallas-Fort Worth, Charlotte, Indianapolis and Phoenix.

Site Selection’s annual Sustainability Rankings go beyond the cosmetic, based on metrics that encompass multiple aspects of ESG (environmental, social and governance), including data from millions of square feet of buildings served by commercial real estate ESG platform Measurabl and the Center for Active Design, which oversees the Fitwel healthy building certification standard. “We don’t just count LEED-certified buildings and solar farms, but the locations and expansions of the plants that build solar modules,” said Site Selection Editor in Chief Adam Bruns, noting that many of the index’s calculations are performed on both a per-capita and cumulative basis. “In addition to renewable energy metrics, we cross-reference our corporate facility investments database with deep research into companies’ corporate social responsibility profiles from our friends at CSRHub to see where high-CSR firms have the most presence.”

The publication’s July 2024 issue also features fresh analysis of the world’s top global startup hubs and smart cities; a provocative exploration of how to power the glut of data centers; exploration of quantum computing’s geographic footprint; a look at continuing investment in rural America; analysis of Asian corporate perspectives on investing in the U.S.; the leadership role of national labs; and a unique vantage point on the thriving I-85 corridor. Other industry reports cover aerospace, food & beverage, and offshore wind, while international coverage extends to Atlantic Canada, the U.S.-Mexico Border Corridor, Africa, the Nordics and South America.

Also featured in the July 2024 issue: the TexasEDConnection Intelligence Report; area spotlights on the Rocky Mountain states and New England; state spotlights on Missouri, New Jersey, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Oklahoma and West Virginia; and Site Selection Investment Profiles of Pflugerville, Texas; Maryland; Middlesex County, New Jersey; and the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority.

Site Selection magazine, published by Conway Data Inc., delivers expansion planning information to a qualified circulation of 41,000 executives of fast-growing firms. Now in its 71st year of publication, Site Selection is also available via Site Selection Online. Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., Conway Data, publisher of Site Selection magazine, Conway Custom Content and industry newsletters Site Selection Investor Watch, Site Selection Project Bulletin and Site Selection Snapshot, in 2017 was recognized as Georgia International Small Business of the Year by the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Conway Data has been a trusted advisor to corporations, government economic development and investment promotion agencies around the world since 1954. Conway Data also manages the Industrial Asset Management Council.

(Note: All circulation information is publisher’s own data unless otherwise specified).

AMERICA’S BEST COUNTIES BY TOTAL POINTS: THE TOP 20
(Jan. 2023 – March 2024)

AMERICA’S BEST COUNTIES BY POINTS PER CAPITA: THE TOP 20
(Jan. 2023 – March 2024, min. 10,000 pop.)