Editor’s note: This Mississippi Today Ideas essay is published as part of our Brain Drain project, which seeks answers to why Mississippians move out of state. To read more about the project, click here.

It’s a familiar and daunting headline: Mississippi is bleeding talent. Our best and brightest—our  kids, our neighbors, our future—are leaving for cities and states that seem more alive, more  prosperous, more like the opportunity they are seeking.

According to data from the Mississippi  Institutions of Higher Learning and Mississippi State University’s National Strategic Planning and Analysis Research Center (NSPARC), just 52% of our public university graduates are working in the state three years after earning their degrees and that number drops to 49% by year five. U.S. Census data shows we have lost more than 60,000 millennials, in a state of about 3 million, since 2010.  

We’ve seen education reform, workforce programs and tax breaks, but we’re overlooking a game-changer right under our noses: tourism. It’s not just about visitors, but the quality of place and community tourism creates when done well. As one of Mississippi’s largest industries, tourism sparks entrepreneurship, creates vibrant communities and fosters pride of place. In short, it is one of our most effective yet underrecognized tools to retain and attract talent. It gives young people a reason to stay and a story worth telling. 

I have seen firsthand how tourism can transform communities. I have watched a blues festival fill the air with music and the sidewalks with locals and visitors from around the world. Restaurants were packed, shops were busy and a once-quiet downtown was bustling. The festival wasn’t just an event. It was proof that a place once written off as “dying” could reinvent itself as a cultural  destination.  

Mississippi is rich with genuine, generous people who are the heart of our great state. Tourism, along with programs like Main Street, has been steadily developing communities worthy of our  people. This work lays the foundation for attracting residents who want professional opportunity, quality of life and a sense of belonging.  

Tourism’s role in reversing brain drain 

Brain drain is not just about jobs. Young professionals want more than a paycheck. They want communities with character, cultural vibrancy and opportunities to connect. Tourism  development builds these qualities. 

When a town invests in assets like music, food, outdoor recreation and historic preservation, it is  also investing in things that enrich life for residents. A hiking trail attracts tourists and gives locals a place to connect with nature. A festival fills hotels and creates experiences for the people who live there. A revitalized downtown becomes a place where residents want to shop, work and open businesses. 

In discussing future plans with my millennial niece who lives out of state, I asked if she would ever consider moving back home. She said the lack of outdoor recreation opportunities was one of the main reasons she planned to stay where she was. As a Gen Xer, this surprised me as we followed jobs and built our lives around them. She is mapping her future around lifestyle amenities that are important to her.

As a tourism leader, her response was a gut punch, and it solidified how crucial it is to invest in quality-of-life assets if we want the next generation to live here. Mississippi has incredible natural resources, but we often lag behind other states in developing outdoor amenities that are accessible to visitors and residents. 

Tourism doesn’t just create jobs and revenue; it creates reasons to stay. 

A powerful economic engine in plain sight 

In 2023, Mississippi welcomed a record 43.7 million visitors, generating $17.5 billion in cash-in hand economic development. Those dollars don’t just fill hotel rooms; they fuel small  businesses. Recent data shows 37% of local spending in Q2 2025 came from visitors, more than one of every three dollars spent. 

Tourism shapes Mississippi’s story 

If we want to keep and bring back our best and brightest, we must leverage tourism to own and amplify our story.  

For too long, much of the national narrative about Mississippi has been written by people who have never lived here. In 2019, state leaders created a dedicated funding model for tourism marketing, allowing Mississippi tourism to finally compete regionally and nationally. That investment has driven growth in GDP, tax revenue and economic development, but I believe our  best is yet to come.  

Longwoods International conducted a study on the “Halo Effect” of tourism marketing. The study found that when people saw tourism ads and then visited a destination, their perception of that place improved dramatically across key economic indicators. Tourism leaders have long understood this connection, but the data confirmed that tourism directly influences how places are viewed as desirable locations to live, work and invest. 

For Mississippi, this means our festivals, coastal trails and warm hospitality can rewrite outdated perceptions. Tourism doesn’t just bring revenue; it builds pride and possibility. 

The front door to economic growth and development 

In economic development, talent attraction is a constant priority. States invest heavily in courting companies and industries, but these efforts work best when paired with a thriving tourism sector. 

No one moves or invests without first visiting.

It all starts with a visit, and the visit starts with us. Tourism is often the first impression Mississippi makes with future residents, business owners and investors. A positive visitor experience can plant the seed for relocation, business expansion, or a decision to return home. 

A call to action 

If we are serious about tackling brain drain, we must stop seeing tourism as “just” a leisure industry, but rather a strategic tool for workforce retention, talent attraction and community revitalization. 

That means closer collaboration between tourism leaders, economic developers and  policymakers. It means aligning strategies, sharing data and recognizing that investments in tourism infrastructure like improved public spaces and preservation of historic sites are also investments in our future workforce. 

I think of my niece every time I pass a quiet river or empty downtown. She is not just one person; she is a generation we risk losing. But I have seen what tourism can do. It can turn a  quiet downtown into a bustling main street, give a young person a reason to build their life here and change how the world sees Mississippi. This transformation is real and the result of intentional efforts by community champions. 

Mississippi’s story is ours to write. At a time when we are competing globally for visitors and people, tourism may be one of our most powerful and untapped tools to write our story in a way that keeps our homegrown talent and welcomes new Mississippians.

Danielle Morgan is a lifelong Mississippian and has led the Mississippi Tourism Association’s advocacy, education and promotion efforts since 2021. She is a Yazoo City native and currently resides in  Carrollton with her husband Brent and precocious rescue dog, Howard Street Howard. Morgan is a  graduate of Delta State University and recently received her Certified Destination Management Executive (CDME) designation, the tourism industry’s highest individual educational achievement.