“Every time a [Rhode Island School of Design] or a Brown University student leaves, we feel like we’ve lost something.”

Already, members of the new group have started collaborating on projects. Three are spearheading an effort to attract more young professionals to Providence, taking on the so-called “brain drain” in the state.

Matthew Guilford, a 23-year-old research analyst at the EDC, decided to take up the project after seeing that there were few people his age in Providence. In fact, he told his peers at the N-GEN event, the city needs 7,000 more people ages 25 to 29 to match Boston’s age distribution.