May 18-20, 2026 | New Orleans, Louisiana
NGIN’s biennial summit bringing together leaders from Small and Midsized Cities across the country to dive into innovative practices, strengthen networks, and champion new pathways for locally driven, community-centered economic growth.
What is the Cityscapes Summit?
The Cityscapes Summit is a national event where leaders dedicated to reimagining local economies gather for immersive sessions, practical insights, and collaborative problem-solving to advance inclusive growth. In 2024, we hosted the inaugural Cityscapes Summit in Durham, North Carolina, welcoming more than 400 leaders who came together to explore fresh approaches to economic growth .
Next May, in New Orleans, Cityscapes 2026 builds on that momentum, tackling the most urgent themes shaping opportunity today: community wealth-building, innovative investment models, the changing nature of work, technology’s growing influence, and the partnerships capable of transforming entire communities. Expect three immersive days of hands-on learning, honest conversations, and cross-city collaboration.
The Cityscapes Experience
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Pre-conference
Once you’re registered, Cityscapes resources help you get prepared, get connected, and get excited for New Orleans.
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Explore the full range of topics and begin building your personalized agenda
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Sign up early for limited-capacity sessions like workshops, tours, and roundtables
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Book your discounted hotel accommodations through our official hotel block
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Access travel tips, venue details, and tools to help you plan your experience
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During the Conference
Cityscapes brings together bold ideas, practical solutions, and a powerful community of leaders shaping the future of Small and Midsized Cities.
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Attend inspiring keynotes, interactive sessions, and hands-on workshops
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Experience immersive elements like our local-business Makers Market and the Grounding Station for rest and recharge
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Enjoy an evening celebration designed to connect attendees in a fun, relaxed setting
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Network with practitioners, funders, partners, and peers from across the country
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Post-conference
Continue the momentum long after the Summit ends and put your learning into action.
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Access session materials, slides, and additional resources shared by presenters
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Bring insights back to your team and apply new ideas to ongoing projects
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Stay connected with peers you met in New Orleans
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Explore partnership, funding, and learning opportunities through NGIN’s Community of Practice
2026 Program Preview
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AI is transforming how people and cities work – but who gets to lead, and who’s left behind? This session explores how small and midsize cities can harness artificial intelligence for inclusive growth without widening the digital divide. Learn how equitable data practices, AI-driven workforce tools, and community-informed design can turn automation anxiety into opportunity for all.
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Cross-sector partnerships are one of the most effective ways to drive inclusive economic development, yet coalition building is hard work. Differing access to resources, diverging visions for advancing community priorities, inconsistent commitment to inclusive values, are some reasons why cross-sector partnerships, especially those that aim to center community voices in economic development decision making are not commonplace. This session will feature successful strategies from NGIN’s Economic Partnership Alliance program that supported partnership building across the country for the last 3 years. Learn dos and don’ts, practical strategies, and inspiring examples of partnership development.
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States hold the purse strings—but cities hold the pulse. This session brings together state and local leaders to explore how inclusive cities can better unlock state resources and influence policy priorities. Hear real examples on bridging the gap between top-down funding streams and bottom-up community needs to build truly statewide ecosystems of inclusion.
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If we can’t measure inclusion, we can’t manage it. This session spotlights cities using data not just to prove outcomes, but to drive inclusive economies. Hear how leaders are blending quantitative metrics with community narratives to track shared prosperity, center resident voice in dashboards, and tell a more complete story of economic success.
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Traditional town halls aren’t cutting it anymore. From digital listening tools to “kitchen-table governance,” this session unpacks how cities are re-imagining engagement to build real trust, shared ownership, and civic joy. Explore inclusive methods that meet residents where they are—online, at work, or in faith and cultural spaces—to co-create solutions that reflect every voice.
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Discover how CDFIs, place-based investors, and mission-driven funds are unlocking real estate and business development in underinvested communities. Learn practical strategies to align inclusive capital with local priorities and turn stalled projects into engines of shared prosperity.
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Automation, AI, demographic changes and industrial landscape shifts are shaping the future of work and the future of workers. How can leaders proactively design good jobs that build on this momentum and ensure that workers benefit from investments and innovations. This session will explore how local leaders are building inclusive workforce focused strategies that center job quality and worker voice.
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Explore new ways to finance and support high-growth businesses through revenue-based financing, place-based strategies, and inclusive capital models. This session highlights how communities, investors, and ecosystem builders are expanding access to growth capital and ensuring diverse supplier firms are positioned to succeed in a rapidly evolving economy.
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Anchor institutions hold untapped power to drive equitable development. This session explores how communities are partnering with HBCUs, faith-based organizations, and hospitals to invest locally, develop real estate, create good jobs, and build community wealth that lasts.
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The gig economy is the new economy. . Cities that proactively support the informal/micro business economy (underserved entrepreneurs, digital micro-business) can create new pathways for inclusion. From gig workers to digital creators, cities are reimagining economic development to embrace creativity, flexibility, and dignity—building systems that protect workers, unlock shared prosperity, and power the people shaping tomorrow’s economy today. This topic intersects with access to capital, digital inclusion, ownership models and the evolving workforce
We’re adding sessions on a rolling basis. Check back for updates, and submit your session proposal here.
Discover the energy of Cityscapes through the voices of attendees and a look back at the moments that defined our inaugural Summit.
We’re Headed to the Big Easy in 2026.
We’re bringing Cityscapes Summit 2026 to New Orleans, a place defined by culture, community, and reinvention. Hosted at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans, the Summit will offer an immersive experience right in the heart of the city. From neighborhood tours and site visits to grounding spaces and a makers market, participants will feel the energy and creativity that make New Orleans so unique. It’s a powerful setting for conversations about the future of local prosperity.
Our Headline Sponsor
The Cityscapes Summit is made possible through the generous support of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, our headline sponsor and a key funder of NGIN’s Small & Midsized Cities Hub. Their commitment to healthy, thriving communities helps make this gathering possible. We also proudly welcome additional partners. Past supporters include The Kresge Foundation, MassDevelopment, and other organizations dedicated to economic growth. Contact us at innovate@newgrowth.org to explore sponsorship opportunities.
