Forum asks: What are costs, benefits of immigration

The evening begins with a reception at 5:30 p.m. in the new Full Frame Theater and Boiler Room on the American Tobacco Campus in Durham.

At 6 p.m., Dr. Jim Johnson, Distinguished Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at the UNC Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise, will present an academic perspective on the economic impact of immigration. A panel of local business leaders discuss the first-hand impact they see from immigration in their businesses and the formal program will be followed by a moderated exchange between speakers and the audience.

Panelists will consider the challenges and opportunities presented by an immigrant work force that numbers in the hundreds of thousands in North Carolina and represents more than 75 nationalities. While more than 50 percent of immigrants in the Tar Heel state are Spanish speakers, Leadership Triangle is planning a discussion that goes beyond issues of Hispanic population growth.