StayLocal is Greater New Orleans’ independent business alliance. We create an environment for local businesses to thrive through research, education, and advocacy.

ICYMI: Weather Insights for Business Planning

Statistics show that forecasting methods and sources of weather information have improved in many ways. Business interruptions caused by weather can be effectively managed with the right strategic approach. Meteorologist David Gilhousen provided tips to learn how at our webinar in April, “Weather Cause and Effect: Insights For Smarter Business Planning”.

Gilhousen worked as a marine meteorologist for the National Weather Service for over 30 years training forecasters, developing web sites, testing instruments, and writing scientific papers. He now publishes daily forecasts on his website and posts You Tube videos. He joined us to present information that inspires the intelligent use of weather forecasts, and took questions from attendees.

This event was hosted by StayLocal together with LCIA, the member services arm of LCI Worker’s Comp, a group self-insurance fund operating in Louisiana since 1989. To watch the webinar recording, please visit StayLocal’s YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/@StayLocalNOLA.

NOLA Innovation: Green Businesses

Food that goes unsold or uneaten in the United States ends up in a landfill, where it decomposes and releases methane — a greenhouse gas between 24 and 87 times more potent than CO2. This makes reducing food waste one of the top three ways to reverse climate change.

StayLocal and GREEN Hospitality, an innovator in Hong Kong’s hospitality industry, work together to offer skills training to owners of local restaurants and other food businesses. Our Small Business Sustainability Accelerator has helped business owners working toward a greener future in both Hong Kong and New Orleans, and emphasizes the role that independent business owners play as initiators of change in communities. Building better systems for addressing food waste fosters innovation for repurposing food waste locally.

In 2024 alone, these restaurants took significant steps to reduce food waste in New Orleans: Petite Rouge Cafe | Southern Food and Beverage Museum | Acorn Cafe | Codey’s NOLA | Morial Convention Center | Tulane Hospitality | Docville Farm | Rebouche’s Cafe | Agave Mexican Restaurant, plus Tulane University and the Morial Convention Center.

Interested in supporting NOLA businesses that are environmentally sustainable? Head to our “eco friendly” local business directory at staylocal.org.

Open for Business During Construction

Great news! The City of New Orleans has secured billions of dollars for infrastructure improvements along business corridors. As a community, we understand the long-term benefit that these improvements have for residents and businesses.

StayLocal has partnered with the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development and RoadWorkNOLA to provide support to businesses for any short-term impact businesses may experience while roads are improved.

Visit the Road Construction Ramp Up! Toolkit page of our website, where you can also find tips and resources for business owners, and ways to sign up for alerts on construction projects.