By: Jessica Kiger, Audience Development & Education Manager, The Atlanta OperaThere’s nothing quite like the roar of thousands of cheering teenagers, but they weren’t at a Friday night football game – instead, it was a Friday afternoon at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, where 1,600 students attended the final dress rehearsal of The Atlanta Opera’s […]
Category: Thought Leader
Posted inFinancial Inclusion, Thought Leader
I Want You To Live Your Best Life. Now!
I want you to live your best life, and it starts with how you talk to yourself, and how you treat yourself. Take the words can’t and impossible out of your dictionary. Thoughts are things, and what say to yourself — matters! Remember that what you say about yourself is much more important than what people are saying about you. As my […]
Posted inSustainable Communities, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
Fostering Interdisciplinary Connections to Advance Atlanta
A Participant’s Perspective on ULI’s Center for Leadership By Jessica Florez, Perkins+Will Since moving to Atlanta in 2000, the city has been home and the base of my career as an urban designer. While I’ve participated in major projects here such as the Turner Field Neighborhoods LCI and the District 3 Westside Revive, my work has taken me […]
Posted inPhilanthropy, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
Addressing Mental Health Concerns in Our Community
On May 9th, United Way of Greater Atlanta unveiled progress toward improving the well-being of children and communities during its Annual State of Children address. Two years ago, United Way revealed nearly half a million children in Greater Atlanta lived in areas of low or very low child well-being. More than 300 stakeholders witnessed United […]
Posted inRegion Matters, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
5 Ideas for Redeveloping Atlanta’s Hulsey Yard
By Paul Donsky and Kate Sweeney For about four decades, the Hulsey train yard just east of downtown Atlanta bustled with activity nearly 24 hours a day. But last week, the yard suddenly grew silent. Owner CSX closed the 70-acre facility, shifting freight traffic to a facility in south Fulton County, according to a report in the […]
Posted inMetro Business, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
“State of Education in Metro Atlanta” Report Highlights Cradle-to-Career Continuum for Student Success
Progress identified on several key indicators; regional focus helps improve outcomes for all students. Learn4Life (L4L) released its third annual “State of Education in Metro Atlanta” report today. Progress was demonstrated in several key indicators: early grade literacy, eighth grade math proficiency and high school graduation. This year’s report highlights effective strategies that are having […]
Posted inhttp://leadership.saportareport.com/people-places-parks/, People, Places & Parks, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership, Uncategorized
National Legislation Boosts Conservation Opportunities in Middle Georgia
by Charles McMillan, Georgia Conservancy Natural Resources Director, with Brian Adams, president of the Ocmulgee National Park & Preserve Initiative, and Chris Watson, senior program manager for the southeast region of the National Parks Conservation Association Earlier this year, Congress passed legislation to expand the boundary of the Ocmulgee National Monument, as part of a […]
Posted inHistoric Westside, http://leadership.saportareport.com/historic-westside/, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership, Uncategorized
Breaking Cyclical Poverty and Lifting Up the Westside Together
Intro by John Ahmann, President & CEO, Westside Future Fund Thanks to Stan Little, president of the SunTrust Foundation for this week’s column. I am grateful to Stan’s leadership and to the SunTrust Foundation’s deep commitment to supporting the long-term revitalization of the Historic Westside. Demonstrating the “Power of We”, the Foundation is providing critical […]
Posted inArts & Culture Seen, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
Magical Lessons Learned in Music
by Kaitlin Gress, Manager of the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra and Interim Director of Education at the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra “Ahh, music! A magic beyond all we do here!” Albus Dumbledore (and J.K. Rowling) understood the fundamental importance of it. In my short time as a music educator, I have witnessed many magical aspects of […]
Posted inGlobal Health & Development, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
Making Wise Choices as We Move Toward Health for All
Photo above: Patients wait for care at the Centro de Salud Granada health center in Granada, Nicaragua. Photo credit: Billy Weeks. By: Dave Ross, ScD Last month, we met with World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and among the topics that came up was Universal Health Coverage, a subject that is close to our […]
Posted inPhilanthropy, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
Catchafire partnership saves nonprofits $1 million in nine months, apply now and get connected
By Lauren Jeong, program associate, Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta It’s no secret that in the nonprofit sector staff are stretched for time and capacity, and all too often, projects might get put on the back burner because of those constraints. Or sometimes a nonprofit needs a specific skill on a short term basis, like […]
Posted inGlobal Health & Development, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
New Program to Increase Awareness and Knowledge of Cardiovascular Diseases Globally
By Rachna Chandora, MPH, team lead for programs for the CDC Foundation We all know someone who has suffered from a cardiovascular disease (CVD), which include disorders of the heart and blood vessels such as coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, rheumatic heart disease and other conditions. Did you know CVD is the leading cause of […]
Posted inhttp://leadership.saportareport.com/people-places-parks/, People, Places & Parks, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership, Uncategorized
The Time is Right for Positive Change
By Michael Halicki, Executive Director, Park Pride I had the good fortune to be in the room at an Atlanta City Council committee meeting last week when Atlanta Parks Commissioner John Dargle recounted his observations since taking on his role 5+ months ago. This column is an attempt to share his observations and layer on […]
Posted inFinancial Inclusion, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
You Really ARE One Of A Kind. Get Up!
By John Hope Bryant, Operation HOPE This is what I had to tell myself when I was homeless in this parking lot in 1984. This urban parking lot in Los Angeles was my university. It was also my home for 6 months of my life when I was 18 years old. I had lost everything, […]
Posted inPhilanthropy, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
2-1-1 Points people “in right direction”
2-1-1 is United Way’s program that connects people in this area to resources they need. The daytime staff starts its shift at 7 a.m. with about 14 to 16 agents sitting on calls — it depends on the time of the year and day of the week, says Don Zubler, 2-1-1 operations director. “They [agents] […]
Posted inPoverty & Equity, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
MEASURING IS GOOD, BUT NOT THE END ALL
By John Berry, Chief Executive Officer, St. Vincent de Paul Georgia I started in the nonprofit sector almost 13 years ago after a 25+ year career in the governmental and business sectors. It was a challenging transition. In 2006, when I came to St. Vincent de Paul Georgia, the nonprofit sector was becoming more focused […]
Posted inThought Leader, Transit
MARTA “GET ON BOARD” DAY FEATURES LUNCHTIME YOGA AT FIVE POINTS
Photo above: Yoga on the Five Points Station soccer field The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) celebrated Get on Board Day last Thursday with a free lunchtime yoga session and mini health and wellness fair at Five Points Station. For the event, the station’s soccer field was turned into a yoga studio where around […]
Posted inArts & Culture Seen, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
Art Does Make You Smart
A new study validates arts education programming By Alvin Townley Supporters of the Woodruff Arts Center invest generously to provide arts education programming to nearly 200,000 students and children each year. Yellow school buses constantly encircle the Center’s midtown campus as they bring students from 150 of the 159 counties in Georgia to experience the […]
Posted inHistoric Westside, http://leadership.saportareport.com/historic-westside/, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership, Uncategorized
Truly Living Well is Growing Food, People and Community
Intro by John Ahmann: Our guest columnist this week is Carol Hunter, Executive Director of Truly Living Well (TLW). I am grateful to Carol for sharing with us Truly Living Well’s impact and the organization’s innovative programs and activities in agricultural training, nutrition, education and job creation – all of which are mission-aligned with the […]
Posted inMetro Business, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
AgTech Startups Selected for First IoT.ATL Living Labs Pilot
From cold storage and mobile crop monitoring to insect farms, the inaugural IoT.ATL AgTech Challenge unearthed several intelligent farming solutions. Last year, the Metro Atlanta Chamber, in partnership with the City of Atlanta, Invest Atlanta, the Atlanta BeltLine, Georgia Power, New City Properties and AGCO, launched the IoT.ATL AgTech Challenge. The nationwide search was created […]
