What conditions are preventing upstate communities from experiencing a new wave of economic growth? That question will be addressed by Carl J. Schramm, an internationally recognized leader in the study of entrepreneurship, innovation and economic growth, as keynote speaker at an Empire Center policy forum in Albany this Wednesday (June 5).

The Empire Center forum, which starts with registration at 9 a.m. at the Albany Institute of History and Art, will examine the economic decline of the upstate region and prospects for its revival, including the possible gains from natural gas exploration.

As University Professor at Syracuse University, Schramm teaches a course entitled “Failed Cities/Fast Cities” in which he takes his students through a consideration of the “micro” economies of each city and region. In his keynote remarks, Schramm will present a new vision of realistic planning for the region that could lead to its rebirth economically.

A prolific writer and speaker, Schramm is author with Robert Litan of “Better Capitalism: Renewing America’s Entrepreneurial Spirit” (Yale, 2012). From 2002 to 2011, Schramm served as president and CEO of the Ewing Marion Kaufman Foundation, a leading non-profit philanthropic organization. He currently writes about urban policy as well as economic growth at Forbes. Schramm is a Syracuse native who earned a B.S. in Economics at LeMoyne College, his M.S. and Ph.D. in economics at the University of Wisconsin, and also a law degree at Georgetown University Law Center.

Other speakers at the forum will include E.J. McMahon, senior fellow at the Empire Center, who will review the most recent economic data on upstate’s economic performance, and Diana Furchtgott-Roth, a senior fellow with the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, who will present the findings of her report, “The Economic Effects of Hydrofracturing on Local Economies.”

Responding to those presentations will be a panel consisting of Kent Gardner, chief economist and chief research officer of the Center for Governmental Research; Brian McMahon, executive director of the New York State Economic Development Council; and Mayor Shawn Hogan of Hornell. The panel will be moderated by Mike Hendricks, editor of the Capital District Business Review.

For forum details and registration, click here.

You may also like

Empire Center Poll: New Yorkers Prioritize Low Energy Prices and Have Little Appetite for Radical Climate Policies

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ALBANY, N.Y. — New Yorkers across political, geographic, age, and income groups oppose energy and climate policies that raise energy prices or force changes on homeowners, according to new Empire Center analysis Read More

New York’s Electricity Prices Fourth Highest in the Country

New York households are paying the fourth-highest electricity prices in the country, according to the Empire Center's In April 2026, residential electricity prices in New York averaged 29.45 cents per kilowatt-hour - 56 percent above the national average Read More

Fourteen NYC Educators Receive Over Half a Million Dollars in Pensions

Fourteen retired New York City educators received more than $500,000 in pension benefits in 2025, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website. The data was obtained from the New York City Teachers’ Retirement Read More

Hammond Submits CDPAP Testimony to Congress

The Empire Center's Bill Hammond today submitted written testimony for a congressional hearing on healthcare fraud. Hammond's testimony to the focuses on evidence of overuse and wa Read More

34 MTA Workers Made $200K+ In Overtime In 2025

Thirty-four employees of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) received more than $200,000 in overtime payments in 2025, as total annual pay surpassed half a million dollars for some, according to , the Empire Center’s governm Read More

A Bullying Lawyer Trapped an Innocent Woman in a Five-Year Court Battle – but New York Law can’t Make her Whole

We like to associate the law with justice—protecting the innocent and punishing the wrongdoers. But sometimes our laws punish the innocent and protect the wrongdoers instead. Dutchess County mom Vika Shock learned this the hard way. In November 20 Read More

New York at the Crossroads. WILL IT MODERNIZE LIABILITY LAW OR EXPAND IT?

Executive Summary New York’s Litigation Environment In a wide range of areas, New York law subjects residents and businesses to greater liability than other states. Consider, for example, that: Unlike most other states, New York a Read More

New York’s Electricity Prices 70 Percent Above the National Average

Recent data from the Energy Information Administration and Empire Center for Public Policy show New York’s average residential electricity prices at 29.99 cents per kilowatt hour. This is 70 percent higher than the U.S. average of 17.6 cents per kilowat Read More