Photo Pick: Just Opportunity Summit by Kelly Jordan
June 21, 2019: Just Opportunity Summit morning panel. Credit: Kelly Jordan
June 21, 2019: Just Opportunity Summit morning panel on leveraging and mitigating public incentives for economic inclusion. Credit: Kelly Jordan
A few hundred people gathered for the first-ever Just Opportunity Summit on Thursday and Friday, set to learn and talk about equitable growth — and how to move the needle on racial and economic inclusion. Not just in Atlanta, but in all communities nationwide.
“We are not talking about a technical-driven way forward exclusively,” said Nathaniel Smith, founder and Chief Equity Officers of the Partnership for Southern Equity, which organized the conference with partners.
“We’re talking about thinking of ways to create an economy that is working for everyone, an economy that sees everyone as valuable,” Smith said.
But it started out with some stark “technical” points anyway: a data-heavy presentation highlighting things like the racial wage gap in the metro Atlanta area. For example, the median white family’s household income is about $72,500 versus the median black family’s roughly $47,000. And that’s even though metro Atlanta has one of the best-educated minority populations in the country.
To see more, check out the videos on PSE’s Facebook page.
Or read a pre-conference interview with Smith.
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- Attendees at a breakout session. Credit: Kelly Jordan
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- Afternoon discussion on social impact and philanthropic investment for social inclusion. Credit: Kelly Jordan
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- Partnership for Southern Equity Founder and Chief Equity Officer Nathaniel Smith, pictured with attendee Lindy Miller, 2018 candidate for the Public Service Commission and co-founder of Cherry Street Energy, a renewable energy company. Credit: Kelly Jordan
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- A data-heavy presentation by the Atlanta Regional Commission’s Michael Alexander. One takeaway: where you’re born predicts your future income, right down to the zip code. Credit: Kelly Jordan
