Real Leaders

Clinton Global Initiative Announces Commitments to Action

Photo by Simon Abrams on Unsplash

Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative of the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation, convenes global leaders year-round and at its Annual Meeting to create and implement solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges. CGI also convenes CGI University, which brings together undergraduate and graduate students to address pressing challenges in their communities and around the world.

To date, members of the CGI community have made more than 2,800 Commitments to Action, which are already improving the lives of more than 430 million people in over 180 countries. When fully funded and implemented, these commitments will be valued at $103 billion. The following new commitments and progress reports were announced today:

Investment and Training for American Infrastructure (CGI America 2011)

Commitment by: American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) / Partners: American Federation of Teachers; American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; Union Labor Life Insurance Company In 2011, The AFL-CIO committed to encourage the investment of $10 billion in workers’ capital and skilled labor to catalyze the large-scale reconstruction of America’s built environment. Raising their investment goal with contributions from CalPRS, CalSTRS, and teacher and public employee funds the AFL-CIO has, to-date, financed creating more than 33,500 and training 900,000 workers.  

Copyright: Clinton Global Initiative
Copyright: Clinton Global Initiative

Scaling Community Advantage Capital for Small Business (CGI America 2014)

Commitment by: Bank of America; Accion Texas; CDC Small Business Finance; Empire State CDC; Justine PETERSEN; Montana CDC; OBDC Small Business Finance; PeopleFund; Valley Economic Development Center; Bank of America; The U.S. Small Business Administration In 2014, Bank of America, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and eight leading Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) committed to significantly scale up small business lending under the SBA Community Advantage Loan Program in the range of $50,000-$250,000 which is critical to small business growth. Bank of America and its partners commit to loan $175 million to 1,750 small businesses by 2017, and creating or retaining more than 23,000 jobs.  

Empowering Collegeville through Neighborhood Renewal (CGI America 2014)

Commitment by: City of Birmingham / Partners: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; City of Birmingham; Regional Planning; Commission of Greater Birmingham; Alabama Department of Transportation; University of Alabama at Birmingham;  Department of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health In 2014, the City of Birmingham, and their partners committed to empowering and renewing the community of Collegeville through sustainable, resilient development, including social remediation, structural renovations, and the creation of new green space.  

Refugee Child Care Microenterprise Development (CGI America 2014)

Commitment by: Child Care Aware of America / Partners: International Rescue Committee-Silver Spring, Maryland; Prince George’s Child Resource Center, Inc. In 2014, Child Care Aware of America and its partners committed to scale their business and language skills training program to help a total of 60 refugee women open child care businesses in the DC Metro area.  

Building a Predictive Grid in the Motor City (CGI America 2014)

Commitment by: Tollgrade Communications / Partners: DTE Energy In 2014, Tollgrade Communications committed to building a Predictive Grid around the Detroit metropolitan area.  Working with DTE Energy, Tollgrade will deploy their smart grid sensors and predictive grid analytics software within DTE’s distribution grid to enhance energy reliability by preemptively identifying and addressing power outages.  

CMT Empowering Education Community College Initiative (CGI America 2014)

Commitment by: Country Music Television / Partners: American Association of Community Colleges; Appalachian Regional Commission; Community Colleges of Appalachia In 2014, CMT and its partners committed to launch the CMT Empowering Education Community College Initiative, a grassroots campaign to encourage nontraditional students and adult learners in rural communities to pursue further education. This three year campaign will initially partner with a cohort of 21 community colleges in some of the most rural and distressed regions of the US. Over the course of this commitment, CMT will expand this initiative to more AACC member colleges across the US, adding a minimum of 20 new colleges each year.  

Green Business Development in Indian Country (CGI America 2014)

Commitment by: Trees, Water & People / Partners: Lakota Solar Enterprises In 2014, Trees, Water & People (TWP), with Lakota Solar Enterprises, committed to a major expansion of their successful green job skills training program for Native Americans. The commitment will provide Native Americans on 14 Great Plains Reservations with the technological skills needed to join the new energy economy, empowering them to create their own economic opportunities that protect the planet, bolster their communities, and inspire the next generation.  

About Clinton Global Initiative America

The Clinton Global Initiative America (CGI America), a program of the Clinton Global Initiative, addresses economic recovery in the United States. Established in June 2011 by President Bill Clinton, CGI America brings together leaders in business, government, and civil society to generate and implement commitments to create jobs, stimulate economic growth, foster innovation, and support workforce development in the United States. Since its first meeting, CGI America participants have made over 300 commitments valued at more than $15 billion when fully funded and implemented.

To learn more, visit cgiamerica.org. For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative.