Connecting Skilled Young Workers with the Businesses That Need Them

Atlanta employers often find it difficult to find skilled workers to fill critical positions, and young people often face challenges when looking for high-quality, well-paying jobs. To address these dual problems, the Metro Atlanta Chamber (MAC) is launching three new initiatives that promise to have a positive impact on talent development and economic mobility throughout the metro area.

Connect to Work GA will focus on linking hiring managers to skilled labor in untapped populations across the state. The Georgia Credential Library will work to standardize credentials—including high school diplomas and other types of degrees—to help businesses define what’s needed for specific job functions and help young people chart their career paths. The Georgia Intern App will help match young talent with MAC investor companies offering early career opportunities.

All three of these exciting initiatives will receive support from a three-year grant provided by the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.

Our Vision for a Healthier Democracy

Wendy Feliz, managing director, Democracy

At this moment, the United States is experiencing unprecedented threats to our democracy. The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation is committed to addressing those threats and protecting the democratic principles that our nation was founded upon.

Focusing our work in Montana and Georgia, we are concentrating on three key areas: 1) advancing reforms that make elections fairer and better reflect voters’ preferences, 2) building a solid bench of future leaders who prioritize the nation over a political party, and 3) creating the conditions for cross-partisan connection and collaboration among elected officials.

In today's political climate, where power often overshadows principles, we believe these efforts will create a more inclusive and effective democratic system that truly serves all Americans.

A Unique Network of Partners Works to Conserve the Precious Grasslands of the Northern Great Plains

Photo by Alexis Bonogofsky.

The Northern Great Plains (NGP), which spans more than 180 million acres across five U.S. states and two Canadian provinces, is one of the only four remaining intact temperate grasslands in the world. It supports 1,595 species of plants and provides habitat for more than 500 species of wildlife. But, certain agricultural and ranching practices threaten habitats in the NGP—reducing biodiversity, disrupting ecological processes and harming their ability to mitigate climate change.

To help preserve this critical region, the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation recently awarded $3 million to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to support its Sustainable Ranching Initiative (SRI) and the Ranch Systems and Viability Planning (RSVP) Network. Through these initiatives, WWF partners with landowners, rancher organizations, corporations, industry groups, NGOs and government agencies to protect grasslands from conversion to cropland, increase adoption of regenerative grazing practices, and restore cropland or degraded lands back to native grasslands.

Since the launch of RSVP in 2021, WWF has provided comprehensive support to 1 million acres of ranchlands, and it intends to enroll 2.5 million acres by 2030.

Beth Brown, managing director of Mental Health and Well-Being, sits with participants during a mental health and well-being convening with HopeLab at West Creek Ranch. HopeLab is a nonprofit organization that develops and invests in tech-based solutions to improve the well-being of young people.

AMBFF In The News

• Strategic Philanthropy Is Alive and Well Two Blank Family Foundation leaders respond to a recent article in the Stanford Social Innovation Review about the supposed failures of strategic philanthropy, SSIR

• Blank Foundation Helps Fund UGA Mobile Vet Clinic Learn about the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation's support of the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine's shelter medicine program, UGA

• 94-Year-Old Founder Still Heart and Soul of Atlanta's Shepherd Center Still making a difference and keeping it positive, Alana Shepherd is keeping one of the nation's leading rehabilitation hospitals on the right path, AJC