When you think of North America, what comes to mind? Perhaps vast natural resources, technological innovation, cultural vibrancy, and economic strength. Today, we must also think of this region in strategic terms: as a shared economic ecosystem that needs constant nurturing, smart leadership, and bold private-sector action.

At last year’s North Capital Forum in Mexico City, I joined colleagues from the U.S., Mexico and Canada to examine how business leaders can help shape the future of North America’s economy. Our panel, “The Business: The Role of the Private Sector in Strengthening Regional Economies,” explored a simple but profound question: how can businesses lean in to make our continent more competitive, resilient, and prosperous for all?

Business as a Force for Good

Business is often viewed through the lens of profit and competition, but we must also view it as a force for good. Private enterprises create jobs, foster innovation, provide upward mobility, and increasingly take on leadership roles in solving complex social and economic challenges.

At the regional level, this potential is magnified. With nearly 500 million people, a combined GDP of over $27 trillion, and deep cross-border cultural and commercial ties, North America is positioned to lead the world. But that requires deliberate, ongoing private-sector leadership.

For three decades, businesses in Canada, Mexico, and the United States benefited from the certainty provided first by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and now by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). These agreements helped North America become a global trade and investment powerhouse, giving companies the confidence to build integrated supply chains, invest in cross-border partnerships, and scale up operations that strengthen our collective competitiveness.

Now, in the face of geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions, shifting workforce demographics, and technological transformation, the private sector must once again lead.

Strategic Industries Require Strategic Cooperation

One of the clearest areas where North American cooperation is essential is in advancing strategic industries that will define the competitiveness and resilience of our shared economy. 

Semiconductors are a prime example. No modern economy can thrive without a robust, reliable semiconductor supply chain, and today’s industries, from automotive to aerospace to defense, depend on them. North American businesses and governments should work together through trilateral initiatives to map supply chain vulnerabilities and invest in regional capacity to complement global networks. 

Another critical sector is energy development and storage, where Canada and the U.S. bring vast reserves of natural resources, research leadership, and capital, while Mexico contributes advanced manufacturing capabilities. Together, these assets create a strong foundation for building a world-class, North American energy supply chain. Companies like Liberty Energy are already capitalizing on this opportunity, with operations and a portfolio of energy assets spanning both the U.S. and Canada. 

As the global race to lead in energy, battery storage, and advanced energy technologies accelerates, aligning investments and capabilities across our three nations is essential to competing with other world markets and driving sustainable growth.

The Nearshoring Moment

Businesses are also responding to changing geopolitics by reassessing their supply chains. The pandemic and trade tensions made clear the risks of over-reliance on any single region of the world.

Enter nearshoring and the opportunity to shift manufacturing and sourcing closer to home, within trusted markets. North America offers advantages unmatched by any other bloc including integrated transportation and energy infrastructure, harmonized trade rules under USMCA, deep pools of skilled labor, and the shared values of democracy, transparency, and sustainability.

Private-sector leadership is critical here, not only in deciding where to locate operations, but in working with policymakers to ensure the region remains competitive and attractive to investment.

Workforce: The Human Foundation

Of course, none of this is possible without a skilled, mobile workforce. Addressing workforce shortages and fostering cross-border talent development must be a top priority. Businesses can and must lead by partnering with universities and training centers across North America, advocating for smart, flexible immigration policies that match talent supply with demand, supporting efforts to align skills standards and credentials across borders, and investing in programs that bring sidelined talent into the economic mainstream. 

A powerful example in the formulation of this kind of cross-border collaboration is Colorado State University (CSU)’s leadership of the North American Agricultural Advisory Network (NAAAN). Hosted by the CSU System and led in partnership with Mexico’s Ministry of Agriculture and Canadian counterparts, NAAAN connects agricultural leaders, universities, and private-sector partners to strengthen rural advisory services, promote knowledge sharing and innovation, and build a skilled, resilient agricultural workforce. Through joint initiatives on biosecurity, disaster preparedness, and workforce development — as well as CSU’s own partnerships and campus in Todos Santos, Mexico — this effort demonstrates how universities and industry can work together across borders to address pressing workforce challenges by serving rural and urban communities addressing food security.

The same spirit of partnership and capacity-building seen in CSU’s work should serve as a model for how companies in all sectors can collaborate with universities and institutions to advance North American competitiveness. 

Collaboration is Essential

Perhaps the most important message is this: no single sector or nation can secure our future alone. Governments set the framework, and academia contributes vital research and talent. But it is business — through investment, innovation, and leadership — that will bring the North American vision to life.

That’s why gatherings like the North Capital Forum matter. They give leaders a chance to move beyond abstract policy and focus on the practical partnerships that will shape outcomes on the ground.

As we look to the future, the private sector must lean in even further, not only to advance regional prosperity, but to ensure that America remains strong, competitive, and secure. Supporting strategic cooperation across North America is a pro-American position; not every product can, or should, be made within our own borders. Business leaders should champion policies that drive U.S. growth through free markets, smart investment, and purposeful regional collaboration.

Business is a force for good. Now is the time to prove it with bold leadership, deeper regional collaboration, and a clear-eyed commitment to delivering results for the American people and strengthening the entire continent.

Debbie Brown is the President of the Colorado Business Roundtable (COBRT), a public policy organization representing top executives from Colorado’s leading employers. COBRT works to strengthen Colorado’s economic vitality by amplifying the voice of business and engaging with leaders across government, industry, and education.