What will power Central Ohio's economy in 2026—and what's keeping business leaders up at night? With changing tariffs, reduced immigration, and transformative tech like AI reshaping industries, the economic road ahead is anything but clear.
Yet Central Ohio continues to outperform much of the Midwest—thanks to population growth, public investment, and a rapidly diversifying economy. What trends will define the year ahead for our region's employers, workers, and entrepreneurs? And what are the risks no one's talking about yet?
Featuring the release of the 2026 Regionomics Columbus Economic Forecast, this week's forum aims to help Central Ohio's civic and business leaders understand what's coming next—and how to prepare.
Featuring:
Kathy Bostjancic, Chief Economist, Nationwide Financial
Dr. Aravind Chandrasekaran, Dean, Fisher College of Business, The Ohio State University
Dr. Bill LaFayette, Owner, Regionomics (who also presents opening remarks)
The host is Ben Lanka, Business Editor, The Columbus Dispatch.
This forum was sponsored by The Columbus Partnership, Ian Alexander Photography, PNC, The Robert Weiler Company, and Smoot Construction.
The presenting sponsor of our livestream was The Center for Human Kindness at the Columbus Foundation. Our livestream partner was The Columbus Dispatch. This forum was also supported by Downtown Columbus, Inc. and The National Veterans Memorial and Museum.
If you would like to keep exploring this week's forum topic, our partners at The Columbus Metropolitan Library recommend reading In This Economy? How Money and Markets Really Work by Kyla Scanlon (2024).
This forum was recorded before a live audience at The National Veterans Memorial and Museum in Columbus, Ohio on January 7, 2026.
