Nicholas Lalla Author Talk

The Garden District Book Shop is excited to host author, urbanist, and native New Orleanian Nicholas Lalla on Tuesday, June 10th. The event will kick off at 6:00 PM. Lalla will be joined by Jeff Schwartz, the Director of the Office of Economic Development for the City of New Orleans to discuss his new book and then open up the floor for an audience Q&A. Afterwards, he will be available to personalize copies of Reinventing the Heartland.

REINVENTING THE HEARTLAND: How One City's Inclusive Approach to Innovation and Growth Can Revive the American Dream

Reinventing the Heartland shares the story of Tulsa, Oklahoma’s successful efforts to reinvent itself—a powerful example of the change America needs, and a model for how tech companies, startups, investors, and urban developers can establish new tech hubs and achieve inclusive growth. Lalla founded Tulsa Innovation Labs in 2020 and built northeast Oklahoma’s tech economy from scratch—raising over $200 million, creating thousands of tech jobs, and kick-starting a citywide effort of reinvention and inclusion. This was the first time in American history a city has dedicated itself in such a concerted way to transforming itself into a tech hub. Using Tulsa’s success as a model, Reinventing the Heartland lays out a bold and pragmatic plan for urban reinvention.

NICHOLAS LALLA

Nicholas Lalla is an urbanist and social entrepreneur, working at the intersection of economic development and emerging technology. He partners with cities to build strategies and initiatives that catalyze inclusive growth. Lalla founded Tulsa Innovation Labs, an organization deploying over $200 million to build northeast Oklahoma's innovation economy. He previously led Cyber NYC for the New York City Economic Development Corporation, a cybersecurity initiative The New York Times called "among the nation's most ambitious . . . " Earlier in his career, at the Urban Land Institute, he launched a national resilience program for cities combatting the effects of climate change. Lalla has written for Newsweek, Fast Company, Stanford Social Innovation Review, and Next City, among other outlets. He can be found online at nicholaslalla.com.

JEFF SCHWARTZ

Jeff Schwartz is the Director of the Office of Economic Development for the City of New Orleans. He leads both the strategy and programs for the City’s economic development work. Previously, he worked in community and economic development, where he founded and led a non-profit that developed $35M of mission-driven real estate and supported small business development. He has a BA in economics and history from UW-Madison, and a Master of City Planning from MIT.