Wyoming Business Council’s meeting short of goal ‘1,000 Voices’

Listening sessions continue

The Wyoming Business Council hosted a state-wide virtual meeting last Thursday as part of their ongoing efforts to better understand the state of the local economy. 

According to WBC emails and its website, the gathering was, “A statewide virtual gathering with a goal of 1,000+ Wyoming voices in one room.” The effort reached 700 people registered with roughly 500 in attendance. The most-answered poll question registered 338 responses. 

Demographically, most attendees (42%) were from Albany and Laramie Counties. Poll results showed that one percent of attendees were from Big Horn County, with no representation from a handful of counties including Crook, Hot Springs, Johnson, Niobrara, Teton, Washakie, and Weston. The residency question was asked at the start of the virtual meeting, making it unclear if residents from those counties later joined. 

The WBC also toured select cities across Wyoming over the summer months, including stops in Greybull and in Lovell. In the virtual meeting the WBC shared what they heard from select cities and after a short presentation they opened the floor to live polling.

Some of the biggest challenges participants identified were rising costs, a lack of job and career opportunities, and limited access to essential needs like healthcare and affordable housing.

Perhaps more insightful than the challenges are the consequences of not solving them. “One insight from the digital huddle stood out: 30% of participants said if the issues they identified are not addressed, they will ‘strongly consider’ leaving the state, and 19% said they won’t be able to see a bright future for their kids here,” said Shannon Sollitt, communications and media specialist for the WBC, in an email to the Standard. 

One of the poll questions asked, “What are one to three words you hope describes the Wyoming economy in 10 years?” Answers from 297 participants included: diverse, thriving, growing, sustainable, inclusive, affordable, resilient, vibrant, and stable. 

In a press release the WBC said, “Participants in Thursday’s Team Wyoming Huddle tuned in from across the state and included business owners, private employees, government and nonprofit employees, educators and retirees. They brought diverse opinions on Wyoming’s economy but largely agreed on one thing: Wyoming has room to grow, and work to do.”

It went on to say, “The biggest takeaway in these listening sessions so far is that a healthy economy goes hand-in-hand with a healthy quality of life, with 30% of participants saying that making Wyoming a competitive place to work and live should be the state’s top priority. That priority was followed closely by building the infrastructure for future growth, helping communities lead their own growth, and building new industries.”

The WBC counted people attending their in-person listening sessions over the summer, along with the virtual meeting, to state their efforts have pushed “statewide economic conversation past 1,000 participants.”

In the press release, WBC CEO Josh Dorrell said, “More than 1,000 people have raised their hands and said, ‘I care about what happens to Wyoming, and I want to be part of it.’ That gives me a lot of hope. We don’t need everyone to agree on every answer. We need enough of us to decide that the future of this state is worth showing up for. And Wyoming is showing up.”

Another poll question asked, “Thinking about your own experience, which of these statements about Wyoming’s economy feels most true to you?” The top answer from 319 participants stated, “We have good people and resources, but we don’t always work together.”

For the question, “Which of these most affects your ability to build the life you want in Wyoming?” The statement “Rising costs without enough growth in income” was selected by 27% of the 321 people responding. 

A handful of listening sessions are left on the WBC agenda including gatherings in Laramie, Rock Springs, and in Jackson. According to the WBC, the insights gathered will directly inform policy conversations later this summer with the Joint Minerals and Joint Appropriations committees.

The WBC published a recording of the virtual meeting on YouTube on its page titled, “What Does Wyoming’s Economic Future Look Like? Team Wyoming Huddle.”

More survey results and summaries can be found on the WBC website: www.wyomingbusiness.org.