A Turning Point

It’s rare to be able to witness first-hand the alchemy of change that launches a city onto a new trajectory. Yet in Pittsburgh that change — a series of man-made lightning strikes — is underway. Since May 20, not even three months from this writing, events have turned in favor of those working to create a new destiny for Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania. 

On May 20, Corey O’Connor won the Democratic primary to effectively become Pittsburgh’s next mayor. Two weeks later, President Trump approved Nippon Steel’s purchase of US Steel — saving 12,000 local jobs and bringing a fresh, new business culture and vitality to Pittsburgh. In July, Senator David McCormick brought President Trump and countless industrial leaders to Carnegie Mellon for an AI Energy Summit, announcing billions in investments for Pennsylvania. This fall, our terrific new airport opens, and in April, we’ll welcome the world for the NFL Draft.

I believe we will look back on this period as Pittsburgh’s turning point, the time when decades of decline reached an inflection point and started on an exciting upward path. 

However, describing these events as alchemy or lightning strikes obscures the fascinating power of what’s happened — the turning points within the turning point. If we look a little closer, what emerges very clearly is the critical importance and essential nature of individual efforts. In short, the role that all of us who want this change are having in making it happen.

Let’s look at it in reverse order. The NFL Draft will come here because the Rooneys and the Steelers organization imagined it for Pittsburgh, courted the NFL and made the sale. And Pittsburgh’s going to put its best foot forward for those 600,000 visitors and 10 million TV viewers because Jerad Bachar, head of Visit Pittsburgh, Chuck Stout, Chair of the Eden Hall Foundation and countless others are putting their shoulders into the preparation work.

The new Pittsburgh International Airport will open this fall and give the world a magnificent new front door to our beautiful, hilly realm because Christina Cassotis — one of this region’s most capable leaders — envisioned its possibility and, along with her team and many others, made it happen.

O’Connor’s election will mean a new era for Pittsburgh and environs — one in which economic and business growth is seen as essential instead of an evil enemy to be bled. Pittsburgh’s next mayor beat his opponent by just 3,347 votes. If 1,674 people had voted the other way, the change that will breathe new economic life into Pittsburgh would not have happened. Many Republicans registered as Democrats so that the best candidate would win — they cared enough to step outside their usual boundaries. In short, they and others changed this area’s future. 

Similarly, the AI Energy Summit in July and the saving of the Nippon US Steel deal and 12,000 local jobs would not have happened if we didn’t have a new U.S. Senator — David McCormick. He created the summit, and he played a key behind-the-scenes role in helping bring along President Trump in the Nippon deal (McCormick’s election opponent Bob Casey steadfastly opposed the deal). Elections matter, as they say. So does having capable and energetic leaders, and what McCormick has done for this region in five months is remarkable.

McCormick deserves credit, but the point here is that the new vitality and changes he’s bringing wouldn’t have happened without the efforts of many people who turned the tide in an extremely close election. If just 7,556 voters had voted differently — 8/100ths of one percent of Pennsylvania’s 8.8 million voters — Casey would have won. That includes some Democrats who defied party lines and voted for the candidate who was clearly best. And it includes the determined efforts of hundreds of people who, in their own ways, helped create McCormick’s victory and welcome the conviction that we can do better.

What’s happening here is a movement. And movements are what change the world. Not everyone has to be part of it, and we’ll never get everyone to be part of it. But the key people have to be. We especially need the people who hold leadership positions in this town to be on board. If they’re more interested in keeping their jobs than helping Pittsburgh reach its potential, then it’s time for new leaders.

We have momentum for the first time in 20 years. We have to seize that opportunity and build on it.

We have two U.S. Senators from Pittsburgh. Imagine what they can do working together. Together, they could create — with the help of others — a pilot program that delineates just exactly what this country wants in prospective immigrants and make a streamlined pathway to citizenship for them. This pilot program could happen here, in the city and region that needs population, diversity and the new spirit that brings — more than any in the country.

We have a pro-business governor with presidential aspirations. Imagine how, with his help, we can transform the future entrepreneurial landscape here — so we can accelerate and reclaim our historic title as the cradle of innovation.

And we have some $15 billion in civic risk capital in our philanthropic foundations. Some of the foundations already are catalyzing the changes we need, and others are poised to come alive and get behind this movement. 
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Pittsburgh Tomorrow is part of the movement. It’s an initiative I lead as CEO and which many others helped create in November 2023 to stop population losses and build a new future. We’re part of the movement through our writings, sounding an initial alarm about the need to turn around both our demographics and our economy.

And we’re part of it through the projects we launched last year. We helped resurrect The Pittsburgh Passport, connecting college students with employers and amenities. Our “Go Global” conference for HR leaders demystified the process of hiring more of the promising 12,000 foreign-born college students here and created a digital how-to handbook. Our “New Americans” journalism project created 35 stories carried by 15 regional news outlets, deepening understanding of local immigrants and our anomalously low percentage of foreign-born citizens (1/4 of the U.S. average). It won three Golden Quill Awards and spurred local media to boost their coverage.

But as John Paul Jones famously said, “We have not yet begun to fight.” Our biggest contributions are dead ahead. 

Welcoming Newcomers. There are just two ways to grow a region. One is having more births than deaths. With Pittsburgh leading all 387 U.S. metro areas in having more deaths than births, option one is out. The only other way is to attract and keep more people than the number of people who leave. Pittsburgh is known as friendly but not welcoming. We’re changing that.

Within a month, we’re launching a digital concierge website to help newcomers of all kinds connect with our region and become Pittsburghers. This free and confidential service for transplants, boomerangers, incoming students and immigrants answers their questions and provides a personal integration roadmap. There’s nothing like it in the USA, connecting newcomers with basic needs such as housing, education, food and job opportunities. But perhaps more important, it will connect these newcomers — in 80 different languages — to the social parts of life that will make them feel welcome and at home. It took me 10 years to feel that way when I moved here. We’re accelerating that process. 

We’ll follow that up in the first quarter of 2026 by opening the Pittsburgh Tomorrow Newcomer Center, a vibrant, bricks and mortar hub where newcomers will connect with information and key services, and equally as important, with each other, through regular welcoming days but also via friendly and free-spirited social gatherings in our “Third Space” — not work, not home but a fun place to gather and meet new people. The city, county and a dozen other partners are on board. Stay tuned.

Pittsburgh Tomorrow Leadership Corps. After the success of last fall’s pilot — 300 students from 15 high schools created civic projects — this fall we’re launching an exciting program to strengthen the leadership abilities of this region’s best and brightest high schoolers, build their knowledge of and affinity with their home city, and increase the chances they’ll build their adult lives here.

These young leaders will play a key and very visible role in preparing for the NFL Draft as part of the regionwide “Immaculate Collection.” For young leaders who want to join us on Saturday morning Oct. 18, cleaning up and preparing Pittsburgh, email us at hello@pittsburghtomorrow.org For the rest of the school year, the Pittsburgh Tomorrow Leadership Corps will join in carefully curated programs: Exploring their own strengths and discovering Pittsburgh’s key economic sectors at one of Pittsburgh coolest tech companies; learning the intricacies of college application and financing from top admissions directors, hosted by Carnegie Mellon University; witnessing great teamwork at a rehearsal of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra; and discussing civic leadership with Pittsburgh’s top political leaders. This program is limited, but if you know an outstanding sophomore or junior who would benefit, email us at hello@pittsburghtomorrow.org.

The Pittsburgh Tomorrow Intersection connects the people who are building Pittsburgh’s future in a series of fun evening gatherings. We call it Pittsburgh’s Best Conversation because that’s how attendees to our first two described it. The next, and best yet, will be Sept. 16 at the Museum Lab on the North Side. “Pittsburgh Welcomes the World” is the theme, featuring Christina Cassotis, CEO of Pittsburgh International Airport, Jerad Bachar, CEO of Visit Pittsburgh, and Jeremy Waldrup, CEO of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. Space is limited, and we may be booked by the time you read this — but you may still be able to register by going to https://luma.com/o2tw35zb.

Public Messaging. Thanks to our civic-minded media partners, you’ll start seeing Pittsburgh Tomorrow messages all over town — a new “We Can Do It!” campaign. These messages will grow and change in time, but their goal is to get the main horsepower in this region — its citizens — behind the effort to build on our momentum and pour it on. You’ll also begin to see stories of the innovators who are already building the Pittsburgh of tomorrow. We’re producing and distributing these Pittsburgh Tomorrow Pioneers videos in a range of social media venues, but you can also find them on www.pittsburghtomorrow.org

As our Rosie the Riveter-based ad campaign says, Together, We Can Do It. We salute the individuals who already are, in every sector of Pittsburgh. And we’ve also built a great team at Pittsburgh Tomorrow, which you can see at www.pittsburghtomorrow.org

The president of our team is Jeff Bell, who has joined Pittsburgh Tomorrow after a storied career in the private sector. He is past CEO of LegalShield. He created the Jeep Rubicon and 4-door Wrangler. And as Vice President for Microsoft and head of Global Marketing for Xbox, he launched Halo 3 and Gears of War. His broad experience in venture capital has helped Detroit and Columbus grow. Jeff joined Pittsburgh Tomorrow because he wants to make this region’s huge potential a reality.

The foundation of our team is our donors. They’re Pittsburgh citizens of all stripes who believe in the possibility of creating a movement for a better future. One is someone I mentioned anonymously in a column 18 months ago — David Nimick. At the age of 100, he is our biggest individual donor, having donated and pledged nearly $500,000. Though his eyesight is diminishing, his vision for Pittsburgh’s future is clear. And he is making a big difference. If you want to join this group — at any level — please email me directly at doug@pittsburghtomorrow.org or donate directly through www.pittsburghtomorrow.org

David reminds me of a quote from Cicero that my father cited as he thought of the 10,000 black walnut trees he planted just a few years before he died: “The farmer is prophetic, who plants his crops knowing he’ll never see their fruition.” 

In a way, we’re all doing that, getting involved in something bigger than we are, believing we can restore and rebuild one of the world’s great cities. All the ingredients are here. And the best thing? It’s beginning to happen, right before our eyes.