All posts tagged: Economic Empowerment

JA Worldwide Nominated for the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize

Junior Achievement of South Florida Celebrates this Prestigious Honor

We’re proud to announce that JA Worldwide has been nominated for the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize. Junior Achievement of South Florida, a member of the global JA network, has been serving young people in Broward and south Palm Beach counties since 1959, equipping them with the skillset and mindset to create sustainable businesses, find meaningful employment, and build thriving communities.

Nominations may be received only from heads of state and certain elected officials, university professors in selected fields, past Nobel laureates, and a few other notable individuals. Although the identity of each nominee officially remains anonymous for 50 years, JA Worldwide received permission to share that JA was nominated by a distinguished Professor of Law and International Affairs who was impressed by our global reach, our success in delivering economic empowerment to youth at scale, and our ability to find unity in diversity. For centuries, unemployment and poverty have led to political instability, violence, and war. By economically empowering youth on all continents, JA serves a conduit for peace.

Asheesh Advani, CEO of JA Worldwide, shared his perspective in response to the nomination: “Peace is only possible when youth in all countries and regions have economic empowerment. JA Worldwide is honored to receive this nomination and will continue our work to enable all young people to have the skillset and mindset to build thriving communities. Our primary hope for solving the world’s most complex problems rests in the young people of today who will be the leaders of tomorrow.”

Although all other Nobel prizes are awarded in Sweden, the Nobel Peace Prize is selected by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, assisted by the Norwegian Nobel Institute, which acts as its secretariat. Grete Nykkelmo, CEO of JA Norway (Ungt Entreprenørskap), responded to the news in this way: “We are delighted to share in this recognition as a proud member of the JA Worldwide network. Our unique blend of entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and work readiness enables us to impact individuals, communities, and society. Peace is achieved when young people have economic opportunity, and we are honored that JA has been recognized alongside other nominees that are striving for a more peaceful world.”

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About Junior Achievement of South Florida

Junior Achievement of South Florida (JA) inspires and prepares youth to succeed in a global economy. JA provides real-world training in financial literacy including budgeting, spending, investing and the use of credit; offers cutting-edge skill-building opportunities that enable young people to explore meaningful, productive careers; teaches students how to start businesses; and introduces entrepreneurial values that strengthen workplaces. Last year, with the help of over 7,100 trained corporate and community volunteers, JA delivered over 20 various programs to almost 50,000 students in classrooms throughout Broward and south Palm Beach counties and at JA World Huizenga Center at the Lillian S. Wells Pavilion, a first-class facility housing JA BizTown and JA Finance Park. For more information about Junior Achievement of South Florida, visit www.JASouthFlorida.org. Follow JA on social media @jasouthflorida.

JA Worldwide Nominated for the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize
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A Virtual Summit for a More Equitable and Just Tomorrow

When: Tuesday, December 08, 2020
Where: Virtual Event
Time: 1:00 PM EST

As an extension of their digital and experiential learning resources, Junior Achievement is partnering with Invest in You: Ready. Set. Grow., CNBC’s financial wellness and education initiative in partnership with Acorns, to host a “Summit for a More Equitable and Just Tomorrow” on December 8 at 1pm ET.

Hosted by CNBC Senior Personal Finance Correspondent Sharon Epperson, this unique interactive event will give teens across America direct access to some of the country’s most knowledgeable experts on economic empowerment, especially as it relates to diversity, equity, and inclusion. The panelists will offer simple, straightforward strategies to help empower participants to strive toward promoting a more equitable and just tomorrow.

About CNBC

CNBC is the recognized world leader in business news and provides real-time financial market coverage and business content consumed by more than 557 million people per month across all platforms. The network’s 15 live hours a day of business programming in North America (weekdays from 5:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET) is produced at CNBC’s global headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., and includes reports from CNBC News bureaus worldwide. CNBC at night features a mix of new reality programming, CNBC’s highly successful series produced exclusively for CNBC and a number of distinctive in-house documentaries.

CNBC also offers content through its vast portfolio of digital products such as: CNBC.com, which provides real-time financial market news and information to CNBC’s investor audience; CNBC Make It, a digital destination focused on making you smarter about how you earn, save and spend your money; CNBC PRO, a premium service that provides in-depth access to Wall Street; a suite of CNBC mobile apps for iOS and Android devices; Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple Siri voice interfaces; and streaming services including Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV and Samsung Smart TVs. To learn more, visit https://www.cnbc.com/digital-products/.

Members of the media can receive more information about CNBC and its programming on the NBCUniversal Media Village Web site at http://www.nbcumv.com/programming/cnbc. For more information about NBCUniversal, please visit http://www.NBCUniversal.com.

Need More Information?

For more information about this event, please contact us!
A Virtual Summit for a More Equitable and Just Tomorrow
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Economic Empowerment for a More Equitable and Just Tomorrow

Why JA? And Why Now?

By Junior Achievement USA

The Realities of Economic Inequity  

Economic inequity has been a reality in the U.S. throughout its history, and it continues to this day. For instance, research by the Pew Research Center shows that the U.S. has the highest income inequality among G7 nations. Despite a narrowing of income and wealth gaps in recent decades, there continue to be vast disparities, especially between white and Black households. In 1970, for example, there was a 78 percent gap in income between white and Black households. And even though that gap marginally improved over time, it was still 64 percent as of 2018. A 2020 study by the Brookings Institution shows that the median net worth of white families in America is ten times greater than that of Black families.

Hispanics and Latinos in the United States face similar challenges, according to research from the Economic Policy Institute. Hispanic men earn nearly 15 percent less than their white counterparts for similar work requiring comparable skills and education. For Hispanic women, it is 33 percent less. At the same time, while Hispanics and Latinos are making greater gains in postsecondary education, that success isn’t reflected in the commensurate reduction of the wage gap compared to working white Americans.

Other research shows that the overall wealth gap more than doubled between America’s richest and poorest families, regardless of race, between 1989 and 2016. To address economic inequity, substantial systemic changes need to occur that are well beyond the mission of an organization like Junior Achievement. They need to happen on the legislative, legal, policymaking, and institutional fronts. But the pressure to eliminate these barriers needs to happen from both ends of the spectrum; not only from those in positions of oversight, but also from those who aspire to break through color lines, cultural divides, and glass ceilings. 

Lasting institutional change is only possible if the people most likely to benefit are prepared with the information and skills necessary to navigate a changing landscape. Knowledge is power, and Junior Achievement’s proven approach will give today’s young people that power in the form of financial capability, career and work readiness, and entrepreneurship. These skills will not only improve their lives but will bolster their families, their communities, and our nation.

Economic Empowerment for a More Equitable and Just Tomorrow
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