The Louisiana Business & Industry Show

Meta. Amazon. Billions in data center investment. And the #1 factor they all named for picking Louisiana? Access to energy. Dr. Greg Upton runs the brand-new LSU Energy Institute (formerly the LSU Center for Energy Studies) — and there is no one more locked into Louisiana's energy economy, past, present, and future. In this conversation, Greg breaks down:  — Why LSU rebuilt the Center for Energy S...

That anti-industry yard sign down the street didn't start in your parish. According to this week's guest, you can trace the money behind it all the way out of Louisiana. Desiree Lemoine spent 11 years at the Louisiana Chemical Association before helping launch Industry Makes, an organization built to give Louisiana's manufacturing workers and the small businesses that depend on them a voice at the...

Industry pays 70% of St. John the Baptist Parish's budget: the schools, the roads, the police force. So why are people from outside the parish spending real money to shut it down? Jaclyn Hotard, President of St. John the Baptist Parish, has spent 35+ years around Louisiana industry and has been dragged through both federal and local court for defending it. She isn't backing down. In this conversat...

Ascension Parish, the most heavily industrialized parish in Louisiana, just ranked #1 healthiest in the entire state. So why has the Cancer Alley narrative dominated Louisiana for 40 years? David Cresson, President of the Louisiana Chemistry Association, sits down with Gordy Rush and Tim Johnson to set the record straight with data from the CDC, the National Cancer Institute, and the Robert Wood J...

300,000 Louisiana families go to work every day because of the oil and gas industry. Tommy Faucheux is the man making sure that doesn't change. Tommy is the President of the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association (LaMoga), the organization representing every major energy company operating in Louisiana, from Chevron and Shell to Valero, Phillips 66, and the LNG exporters powering Europe's...

For more than 30 years, Barry Erwin has been one of the most influential voices in Louisiana policy, and most people have never heard of him. As Chief Policy Officer for Leaders for a Better Louisiana (the merger of CABLE and the Committee of 100), Barry is at the center of the state's biggest challenges: workforce development, K-12 education, economic growth, and building a Louisiana that keeps i...

In this episode of the Louisiana Business & Industry Show, Gordy Rush and Tim Johnson sit down with Jill Kidder, President and CEO of Visit Baton Rouge, to discuss one of the most underrated economic engines in Louisiana: tourism, a $1.3 billion industry supporting over 42,000 jobs in East Baton Rouge Parish alone. Jill breaks down how Visit Baton Rouge attracts millions of visitors to the cap...

In this episode of the Louisiana Business & Industry Show, Gordy Rush and Tim Johnson sit down with Dr. Quentin Taylor, Chancellor of River Parishes Community College, to discuss one of the most important workforce stories in Louisiana right now, a community college at the epicenter of the state's industrial explosion. Dr. Taylor breaks down how RPCC has doubled enrollment and graduation rates...

In this episode of the Louisiana Business & Industry Show, Gordy Rush and Tim Johnson sit down with Verge Ausberry, Vice President and Athletic Director at LSU, to discuss one of the most powerful economic drivers in the state of Louisiana: LSU Athletics, a $250 million operation generating billions in regional economic impact. Verge breaks down the business of running a major college athletic...

In this episode of the Louisiana Business & Industry Show, Gordy Rush and Tim Johnson sit down with Tanner Johnson, Partner at Van Ness Feldman LLP, to discuss one of the most critical economic debates facing Louisiana today: carbon capture, pipelines, private property rights, and what it all means for the state's future. Tanner breaks down why Louisiana must innovate with carbon capture or ri...

In this episode of the Louisiana Business & Industry Show, Gordy Rush and Tim Johnson talk with Kate McArthur, President and CEO of the Ascension Economic Development Corporation, about Ascension Parish’s rapid rise as Louisiana’s top destination for major investment. McArthur breaks down the massive Riverplex Mega Park and the nearly $20 billion in transformative projects it has attracted, in...

In this episode of the Louisiana Business & Industry Show,  Gordy Rush and Tim Johnson sit down with Patrick Riley,  Director of Governmental Affairs and Assistant General Counsel  for the Louisiana Chemistry Association (LCA), to discuss  the role of Louisiana's chemistry industry in shaping the  state's economic future. Patrick shares LCA's mission as the unified voice of  Louisiana's chemic...

LABI President & CEO Will Green outlines a nine‑point roadmap focused on strengthening Louisiana’s long‑term economic future. The plan emphasizes improving the state’s tax structure, growing and retaining a skilled workforce, supporting job creators, advancing infrastructure, and making Louisiana more competitive with neighboring states. Green stresses the need for pro‑growth policies, economi...