Tag Archives: google.org

Expanding access to clean energy careers

Climate change affects everyone, but not equally. Our fossil-based energy system has disproportionately impacted communities of color and low-income communities for generations. So as the world transitions to a carbon-free electric grid, it’s important to support programs building a just and equitable clean energy economy.

This transition to clean energy is expected to create 10.3 million jobs by 2030, outpacing the nearly 2.7 million fossil fuel jobs of today. Google.org and Google Nest recently partnered with Dream Corps Green For All to launch The Green For All Clean Energy Scholarship Fund, which aims to expand access to clean energy careers for jobseekers from underrepresented communities.

We recently announced our first recipients at Black Future Weekend, a Dream Corps event focused on diversifying the tech industry. As part of the application process, they shared their “green dream” and explained why they wanted a career in the renewable energy industry:

Quianya Enge (Carbondale, Illinois)

As someone directly impacted by the criminal justice system and now a doctoral student in Higher Education and Administration with a master’s degree in Workforce Education and Development, my dream is to build a career in the clean energy sector. Renewable energy jobs are perfect for those who need a second chance in the workforce. However, there is a negative perception of felons within the solar industry and society as a whole — and as a workforce developer, I’d like to change that. I want to build a team that helps individuals from marginalized communities find training and jobs in the solar field, and form partnerships with groups in the clean energy industry that work to reduce recidivism.

Alcia Shaw (Brooklyn, New York)

I grew up on a farm in Jamaica, deep within the island’s green-swathed mountains. Despite the hardships I faced growing up in a poverty-stricken country, as a young girl, I found tranquility in climbing the nearest tree and watching as the deep blue Caribbean Sea embraced the north coast. It will be a dream come true for me when our communities are no longer at risk of excess pollution, waste and questionable water sources. This scholarship will allow me to enroll in a sustainability management course at Yale University, giving me the qualifications I need to pursue my passion for equality and maintain the environmental integrity of my community and similar areas across the globe.

Kristian Thymianos (Las Vegas, Nevada)

To me, the clean energy sector is a way to keep my community alive despite the ongoing issues surrounding climate change. I grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada — where the only thing as intense as the city is the sun beating down on it. We contend with major issues due to climate change, like urban heat islands that threaten the health of our residents and tourists and negatively impact our infrastructure, and declining water resources. These are not unique to Las Vegas, but they impact our community more than others. ​​Finding ways to fix and provide for my hometown pushes me to do the work I do.

Extending the impact with Nest Renew

Last year, Google Nest unveiled Nest Renew, a service for compatible Nest thermostats in the U.S. that makes it easy to support clean energy right from home. Through the Energy Impact Program, a feature within Nest Renew, you can help direct funds to nonprofit partners working towards an equitable sustainable future.

Later this year, Dream Corps will join GRID Alternatives and Elevate Energy as a founding partner of the Energy Impact Program, ensuring continued support for scholarship recipients and guaranteed career placement for individuals from underrepresented communities.

A search for bold ideas to drive climate action

Google has been committed to climate action for decades — and during that time, we've learned that we can have the biggest impact on our planet by working together. That’s why we’re launching a $30 million Google.org Impact Challenge on Climate Innovation — an open call for ambitious projects from nonprofits and social enterprises that accelerate advances in climate information and action, driven by open data, AI, machine learning and other digital tools.

We’re leading by example at Google by setting a goal to achieve net-zero emissions across all of our operations and value chain, including our consumer hardware products, by 2030. We’re going even further for our data centers and campuses, with a moonshot goal to operate on 24/7 carbon-free energy by the end of the decade. Our work to procure clean energy around the world not only helps us decarbonize our own operations, but also greens the local grids where we’re based, benefitting entire regions.

But when it comes to solving a problem as big and urgent as climate change, we get more done when we partner together. So we’re using our technology to make critical climate data available to everyone. Cities are using our Environmental Insights Explorer to better understand their emissions data, solar potential, air quality and tree canopy coverage. Customers are using innovative new tools in Google Cloud like Carbon Footprint, which helps companies accurately measure the gross carbon footprint of their cloud usage. And Google users can make more sustainable choices with information like the carbon footprint of their travel — whether finding flights with lower carbon emissions or choosing fuel-efficient driving directions in Google Maps.

Drive climate action through data

Through theGoogle.org Impact Challenge on Climate Innovation, we'll build on this work by supporting nonprofits and social enterprises that demonstrate the power of digital technology in climate innovation. Six projects will receive $5 million each in funding, along with in-kind donations of Google’s products and technical expertise through Google.org Fellowships and more. These funds will speed up the collection of data and development of tools that advocates, policymakers, businesses and individuals need to drive positive impact.

Open data and advanced digital tools, including AI and machine learning, can give way to new climate solutions that simply wouldn’t have been possible in the past. These technologies can reveal patterns and insights that were otherwise hidden in a mountain of data. Since 2018, Google.org has supported a wide range of climate innovators that can help us make better planning decisions by modeling future outcomes — including projects that map emissions on a global scale; show people the most effective places to restore ecosystems; and help small businesses understand their carbon footprint, to name a few. Tools like these make the climate information around us more accessible and useful.

This year’s Impact Challenge builds off the success of Google.org’s Impact Challenge on Climate in Europe in 2020, and a $6 million Google.org Sustainability Seed Fund launched earlier this year for the Asia-Pacific region.

Apply now with your bold ideas

Applications for the Google.org Impact Challenge on Climate Innovation are now open at g.co/climatechallenge. We encourage organizations to apply early, as priority consideration will be given to proposals received by July 29. Selected organizations will be announced on a rolling basis throughout the year, and the application window will remain open until all six projects have been selected.

A search for bold ideas to drive climate action

Google has been committed to climate action for decades — and during that time, we've learned that we can have the biggest impact on our planet by working together. That’s why we’re launching a $30 million Google.org Impact Challenge on Climate Innovation — an open call for ambitious projects from nonprofits and social enterprises that accelerate advances in climate information and action, driven by open data, AI, machine learning and other digital tools.

We’re leading by example at Google by setting a goal to achieve net-zero emissions across all of our operations and value chain, including our consumer hardware products, by 2030. We’re going even further for our data centers and campuses, with a moonshot goal to operate on 24/7 carbon-free energy by the end of the decade. Our work to procure clean energy around the world not only helps us decarbonize our own operations, but also greens the local grids where we’re based, benefitting entire regions.

But when it comes to solving a problem as big and urgent as climate change, we get more done when we partner together. So we’re using our technology to make critical climate data available to everyone. Cities are using our Environmental Insights Explorer to better understand their emissions data, solar potential, air quality and tree canopy coverage. Customers are using innovative new tools in Google Cloud like Carbon Footprint, which helps companies accurately measure the gross carbon footprint of their cloud usage. And Google users can make more sustainable choices with information like the carbon footprint of their travel — whether finding flights with lower carbon emissions or choosing fuel-efficient driving directions in Google Maps.

Drive climate action through data

Through theGoogle.org Impact Challenge on Climate Innovation, we'll build on this work by supporting nonprofits and social enterprises that demonstrate the power of digital technology in climate innovation. Six projects will receive $5 million each in funding, along with in-kind donations of Google’s products and technical expertise through Google.org Fellowships and more. These funds will speed up the collection of data and development of tools that advocates, policymakers, businesses and individuals need to drive positive impact.

Open data and advanced digital tools, including AI and machine learning, can give way to new climate solutions that simply wouldn’t have been possible in the past. These technologies can reveal patterns and insights that were otherwise hidden in a mountain of data. Since 2018, Google.org has supported a wide range of climate innovators that can help us make better planning decisions by modeling future outcomes — including projects that map emissions on a global scale; show people the most effective places to restore ecosystems; and help small businesses understand their carbon footprint, to name a few. Tools like these make the climate information around us more accessible and useful.

This year’s Impact Challenge builds off the success of Google.org’s Impact Challenge on Climate in Europe in 2020, and a $6 million Google.org Sustainability Seed Fund launched earlier this year for the Asia-Pacific region.

Apply now with your bold ideas

Applications for the Google.org Impact Challenge on Climate Innovation are now open at g.co/climatechallenge. We encourage organizations to apply early, as priority consideration will be given to proposals received by July 29. Selected organizations will be announced on a rolling basis throughout the year, and the application window will remain open until all six projects have been selected.

Ongoing support for refugees and displaced people

My family has been seeking refuge for generations. During the Trujillo regime, my grandfather fled the Dominican Republic for Cuba with nothing but 20 pesos sewn into his pants. 30 years later they were forced to flee again. My eight year old father landed in Florida safely ahead of my grandparents, but a planned four month separation stretched to four and a half years due to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) helped reunify and resettle my family, as they have for so many others. I joined Google.org in 2019, and through Google’s philanthropic arm I’ve been lucky enough to work with organizations that support refugees, including the IRC, to support those who find themselves in situations like my parents and grandparents — having to leave their homes for the safety of their families. Since 2015, Google has not only given over $45 million to organizations supporting refugees through Google.org, it’s also provided support through our products and enabled Google employees to volunteer.

Connecting refugees with resources quickly

We’ve found that time is one of the most important factors in delivering effective humanitarian support. Between 60-80% of aid sector funding is spent on logistics alone. To help power faster humanitarian action, Google.org is announcing a $1 million grant to NeedsList along with a Google.org Fellowship. Through a free, public version of their crisis response software, NeedsList plans to move over $50 million of resources to local aid organizations, supporting 10 million people.

NeedsList is also operating Welcome.US’ Welcome Exchange to help those arriving from Afghanistan and Ukraine with housing, employment, and technology resources. Welcome.US has brought togethera coalition of over 35 CEOs, co-chaired by our CEO Sundar Pichai, to scale private sector support for those seeking refuge. As part of our participation in the Welcome.US CEO Council, Google has contributed $1 million in grant funding, $1 million in donated search ads, and 30,000 Pixel phones to Welcome.US.

A screenshot of the Welcome.US’ Welcome Exchange platform that shows how needs and offers are displayed in the northeastern US.

Google.org has also supported Signpost, a platform which provides information on critical services like legal rights, accommodation, transportation and medical care, since the 2015 civil war in Syria and through the Venezualean refugee crisis in 2019. This year, supported by 15 Google.org Fellows and additional grant funding, Signpost partnered with United for Ukraine to build out unitedforukraine.org — an effort to help displaced people find housing, legal aid and psychological support. This project, along with Google.org grantee Outright Action International’s Ukraine Emergency Fund for LGBTQ+ refugees, are providing meaningful support for those affected by the war in Ukraine.

Helping through our products, tools and spaces

Teams across Google have also created products and provided space and support to refugee populations over the years.

  • Google Search and Maps provides information to identify border crossings and avoid trouble, including SOS Alerts and temporarily disabling some live features to help protect the safety of local communities.
  • Google Translate helps refugees overcome language barriers through features like offline translation and camera mode.
  • Google for Startups Campus in Warsaw opened its doors for local nonprofits to provide legal and psychological support to refugees and temporary office space for Ukrainian startups.
  • YouTube is partnering with the UNHCR and Welcome.US to raise awareness about the scale of communities affected by refugee crises, from Syria to Venezuela to the Democratic Republic of Congo, and to support refugee resettlement around the world.

Supporting evolving COVID information needs

COVID-19 has transformed the way we live, work and interact with each other. Over the course of the pandemic, finding timely, reliable and locally relevant information has been critically important, and people have often turned to Google first to make sense of the new environment. Ever since Search interest in coronavirus hit an all-time high in March 2020 worldwide, people’s searches have changed as we’ve moved into new phases of the pandemic.

As the pandemic evolves, so do people’s information needs. Our goal is to continue providing timely, fresh and actionable information as some people return to offices, explore travel around the world and navigate everyday life in the safest ways possible.

Supporting evolving testing needs

At-home testing is a helpful and convenient way to minimize community spread through awareness of COVID status. In the United States alone, search interest in “at home covid tests” increased by 170% in May 2022. So starting this month in the U.S., people can more easily find at-home COVID test kits on Google Search. With a quick Search, you can quickly see at-home testing kits available in stores, and nearby testing information provided by local health authorities.

A smartphone screen showing search results for “at home covid testing”

Empowering travelers

When you search on Google for travel information, you can see if there’s an advisory or any entry restrictions at your destination, including testing, quarantine or immunization requirements. Last spring, we introduced a new option to turn on tracking for these advisories right from the Search results page. You receive an email if the travel requirements change for your selected destination if you’re logged into your Google account. For the United States, you can also view and track travel advisories at the state level.

An animation of a smartphone screen showing alerts about COVID travel restrictions on Google Search and Gmail

Continuing to support vaccination efforts

With a quick Google Search, you can already find timely information on vaccinations, including boosters, specific vaccine types and appointment availability. This information also includes support for pediatric vaccinations as kids head to summer camp and participate in other seasonal activities. In the U.S, when parents search for “covid vaccine for kids” they can quickly find healthcare providers that offer COVID pediatric vaccinations.

Amplifying authoritative information

Collaborating with trusted partners, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has been critical to getting people the information they need at the right time. We’ve also helped amplify important messages from public health authorities by donating Google Search advertising and related expert assistance. Through this initiative, the WHO has provided more than two billion COVID-related public service announcements, connecting nearly 250 million people to high-quality COVID-19 Information. We recently pledged an additional $150 million in donated Search ads — bringing our total in-kind commitment to more than $1 billion with the overarching goal of connecting people to authoritative information related to COVID-19 and related topics as they search on Google.

To make sure people can easily find the information they need about COVID, we’ve built and grown a number of features that further our goal of making healthcare information more accessible to everyone. As the world continues to navigate COVID, Google remains committed to helping reduce friction in accessing health information and care for all.

Supporting evolving COVID information needs

COVID-19 has transformed the way we live, work and interact with each other. Over the course of the pandemic, finding timely, reliable and locally relevant information has been critically important, and people have often turned to Google first to make sense of the new environment. Ever since Search interest in coronavirus hit an all-time high in March 2020 worldwide, people’s searches have changed as we’ve moved into new phases of the pandemic.

As the pandemic evolves, so do people’s information needs. Our goal is to continue providing timely, fresh and actionable information as some people return to offices, explore travel around the world and navigate everyday life in the safest ways possible.

Supporting evolving testing needs

At-home testing is a helpful and convenient way to minimize community spread through awareness of COVID status. In the United States alone, search interest in “at home covid tests” increased by 170% in May 2022. So starting this month in the U.S., people can more easily find at-home COVID test kits on Google Search. With a quick Search, you can quickly see at-home testing kits available in stores, and nearby testing information provided by local health authorities.

A smartphone screen showing search results for “at home covid testing”

Empowering travelers

When you search on Google for travel information, you can see if there’s an advisory or any entry restrictions at your destination, including testing, quarantine or immunization requirements. Last spring, we introduced a new option to turn on tracking for these advisories right from the Search results page. You receive an email if the travel requirements change for your selected destination if you’re logged into your Google account. For the United States, you can also view and track travel advisories at the state level.

An animation of a smartphone screen showing alerts about COVID travel restrictions on Google Search and Gmail

Continuing to support vaccination efforts

With a quick Google Search, you can already find timely information on vaccinations, including boosters, specific vaccine types and appointment availability. This information also includes support for pediatric vaccinations as kids head to summer camp and participate in other seasonal activities. In the U.S, when parents search for “covid vaccine for kids” they can quickly find healthcare providers that offer COVID pediatric vaccinations.

Amplifying authoritative information

Collaborating with trusted partners, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has been critical to getting people the information they need at the right time. We’ve also helped amplify important messages from public health authorities by donating Google Search advertising and related expert assistance. Through this initiative, the WHO has provided more than two billion COVID-related public service announcements, connecting nearly 250 million people to high-quality COVID-19 Information. We recently pledged an additional $150 million in donated Search ads — bringing our total in-kind commitment to more than $1 billion with the overarching goal of connecting people to authoritative information related to COVID-19 and related topics as they search on Google.

To make sure people can easily find the information they need about COVID, we’ve built and grown a number of features that further our goal of making healthcare information more accessible to everyone. As the world continues to navigate COVID, Google remains committed to helping reduce friction in accessing health information and care for all.

Supporting evolving COVID information needs

COVID-19 has transformed the way we live, work and interact with each other. Over the course of the pandemic, finding timely, reliable and locally relevant information has been critically important, and people have often turned to Google first to make sense of the new environment. Ever since Search interest in coronavirus hit an all-time high in March 2020 worldwide, people’s searches have changed as we’ve moved into new phases of the pandemic.

As the pandemic evolves, so do people’s information needs. Our goal is to continue providing timely, fresh and actionable information as some people return to offices, explore travel around the world and navigate everyday life in the safest ways possible.

Supporting evolving testing needs

At-home testing is a helpful and convenient way to minimize community spread through awareness of COVID status. In the United States alone, search interest in “at home covid tests” increased by 170% in May 2022. So starting this month in the U.S., people can more easily find at-home COVID test kits on Google Search. With a quick Search, you can quickly see at-home testing kits available in stores, and nearby testing information provided by local health authorities.

A smartphone screen showing search results for “at home covid testing”

Empowering travelers

When you search on Google for travel information, you can see if there’s an advisory or any entry restrictions at your destination, including testing, quarantine or immunization requirements. Last spring, we introduced a new option to turn on tracking for these advisories right from the Search results page. You receive an email if the travel requirements change for your selected destination if you’re logged into your Google account. For the United States, you can also view and track travel advisories at the state level.

An animation of a smartphone screen showing alerts about COVID travel restrictions on Google Search and Gmail

Continuing to support vaccination efforts

With a quick Google Search, you can already find timely information on vaccinations, including boosters, specific vaccine types and appointment availability. This information also includes support for pediatric vaccinations as kids head to summer camp and participate in other seasonal activities. In the U.S, when parents search for “covid vaccine for kids” they can quickly find healthcare providers that offer COVID pediatric vaccinations.

Amplifying authoritative information

Collaborating with trusted partners, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has been critical to getting people the information they need at the right time. We’ve also helped amplify important messages from public health authorities by donating Google Search advertising and related expert assistance. Through this initiative, the WHO has provided more than two billion COVID-related public service announcements, connecting nearly 250 million people to high-quality COVID-19 Information. We recently pledged an additional $150 million in donated Search ads — bringing our total in-kind commitment to more than $1 billion with the overarching goal of connecting people to authoritative information related to COVID-19 and related topics as they search on Google.

To make sure people can easily find the information they need about COVID, we’ve built and grown a number of features that further our goal of making healthcare information more accessible to everyone. As the world continues to navigate COVID, Google remains committed to helping reduce friction in accessing health information and care for all.

Renewing our commitment to Brazil

New technology advancements during the pandemic have reshaped the way we connect, work and run businesses around the world. Today, we gathered Googlers, journalists, business leaders, civil society representatives and public figures for our Google for Brazil event in São Paulo to demonstrate how we’ll contribute to Brazil’s continued digital transformation.

The event happened on the heels of the IX Summit of the Americas, where our CEO Sundar Pichai announced a five-year, $1.2 billion commitment to Latin America. Here’s how that will unfold in Brazil:

Reinforcing Brazil as an innovation hub

In January, we announced our goal to increase our engineering workforce in the country. At today’s event, we shared our plans to open a new multidisciplinary engineering center in São Paulo. Located on the São Paulo University campus, the new center will be part of the IPT Open Experience, a program created by the Technological Research Institute (IPT) of the State of São Paulo to promote innovation.

A 3D rendering of an office building with three floors, a large staircase and various outdoor spaces

A 3D render of the new multidisciplinary engineering center in São Paulo

The Google São Paulo Engineering Center, which should be complete at the end of 2024, will accommodate up to 400 Googlers from various technical areas. Initially, this new hub will host Google engineers working on areas like privacy, security and safety. They will join teams focused on delivering simple user protection and controls to help people stay safe online.

This important work happens both inside and outside of Google. So in partnership with our Google Safety Engineering Center (GSEC), we're launching a dedicated outreach program for content responsibility in Brazil — engaging with tech experts, educators, regulators and key opinion formers to discuss our approach to content responsibility and online safety, and provide more transparency into our work.

Using technology in service of recovery

Being online is essential for any business to grow, and even more so to recover from the pandemic. According to our most recent Economic Impact Report from consulting firm AlphaBeta, thousands of businesses, nonprofits, publishers, creators and developers relied on Google Search, Google Ads, Google AdSense, Google Play and YouTube to generate US$19.4 billion in economic impact in Brazil in 2021.

When it comes to selling products or services in physical stores, it's important for businesses to keep their online information up to date. We’re continuing to experiment with Duplex, our AI technology for natural voice conversations, to call Brazilian businesses and update their hours in their business profile on Maps. All calls are conducted respecting local privacy laws.

Another way to help people in times of recovery is to connect them with the information they need. According to the latest report by research network Rede Penssan, hunger affects more than 33 million Brazilians today. So we partnered with Ação Cidadania to make it easier for Brazilians to find reliable information about soup kitchens and food banks on Search and Maps, with 1,000 currently pinned across the country.

Brazilians can now find soup kitchens and food banks on Search and Maps

Supporting digital inclusion

Since 2017, we’ve invested over 1.6 billion reais to strengthen our technical infrastructure in Brazil, including our subsea cables and cloud region in São Paulo. All these projects aim to improve the quality of digital services for Brazilians and support the growth of our Cloud business. And as our employee base grows, our local Cloud team will move to a new office in São Paulo city in 2023.

To help people and entrepreneurs make the most of this infrastructure, we need to equip them with knowledge and skills. This is especially important for job seekers, as Brazil currently has 11.9 million unemployed people. Today, we announced a commitment to provide 500,000 Google Career Certificate scholarships over the next four years. This year, we’ll offer 30,000 of them in partnership with Centro de Integração Empresa-Escola (CIEE), helping Brazilians get access to jobs in high-growth fields like data analysis and UX design. We’ve also expanded Capacita+, our educational content hub for cloud computing.

A video of Patricia Alves talking about her professional journey
10:25

This builds on the work Google.org and the InterAmerican Development Bank have been supporting since 2019 with JA Brazil to bring Google Career Certificates to over 2,000 young Brazilians across the country. Additionally, we recently renewed our commitment with Instituto Rede Mulher Empreendedora (RME) through a new $2 million Google.org grant to train 200,000 women all over the country on entrepreneurship, with a focus on Northern Brazil. This complements our new Google for Startups scholarship program in partnership with Instituto Vamo Que Vamo to train 200 young Black people, mostly women, in software development.

Promoting a more sustainable planet

Each day, more people ask themselves what they can do to help protect our planet from environmental threats like climate change. Many of these questions start in Google Search. So in partnership with the United Nations, we’ve released an information panel that appears above results for climate change-related queries. In addition to sharing basic facts about the topic, the panel also offers tips for living a more sustainable life.

As a technology company, we can also help others use digital solutions to increase the scale and impact of their work. Through a $500,000 Google.org commitment ($250,000 in cash grants and $250,000 in Ad Grants), we’ll support The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to develop solutions to protect biodiversity in the Amazon rainforest.

Reaffirming our mission

Our Google for Brazil event was a special moment to demonstrate our long-term commitment to the country and celebrate Brazil's unique contributions to the world. In fact, to cap off the day, we revealed a new Google Arts & Culture collection dedicated to Gilberto Gil, one of Brazil's best-known musicians. It's the platform’s first large retrospective dedicated to a living artist, unpacking Gil’s life, career and influences on Brazilian and global culture on the month of his 80th birthday.

Illustration of Gilberto Gil surrounded by icons representing London, Benin, New York, Los Angeles, Salvador, Jamaica, Rio de Janeiro and Japan

Gilberto Gil's Cultural Roadtrip Map, illustrated by artist Raiana Britto

Through all of these initiatives, we are reaffirming our mission to help Brazilians use technology to build a more inclusive, innovative, sustainable, democratic and equitable future.

Helping people impacted by the justice system

On a visit to Indiana Women’s Prison in 2018, I joined a ceremony for graduates of The Last Mile, an organization preparing people for successful reentry through business and technology training. It was my first time attending a graduation inside, and I listened and was inspired as each graduate shared their determination to succeed in spite of the many challenges they might face after release.

Each year, 640,000 people are released from prison only to be met with an unemployment rate that is five times the national average. This rate is even higher for Black, Latino, and low income individuals, who are disproportionately impacted by mass incarceration. Devastatingly, more than half of those released from US prisons don’t land a job in the first year of returning home, in part because they don't have the necessary digital skills to compete in an ever-changing job market.

Since 2015, Google has supported many aspects of criminal justice reform with over $48 million in grant funding and 50,000 pro-bono hours. But there’s more work to be done. Today, we’re committing more than $8 million in new funding that will support job seekers impacted by the justice system with digital skills training and automatic record clearance.

The Grow with Google Fund for Justice-Impacted Communities will make more than $4 million available for nonprofits to lead Grow with Google workshops and trainings. Using a curriculum co-curated with five justice-reform-focused partners, our goal is to help 100,000 people impacted by the justice system build career skills–ranging from fundamental skills like finding and applying for jobs online, making a resume using web-based tools, or building a professional brand, to more advanced topics like using spreadsheets to budget for a business.

To accelerate jobs access for formerly incarcerated people, Google.org is providing a $3 million grant and a full-time team of Google.org Fellows who will work pro-bono to support Code for America. Code for America works with community organizations and government to build digital tools and services, change policies, and improve programs. Fellows will work alongside Code for America to help transform the process of automatically clearing criminal records; creating a replicable model to better identify and expunge past records through CFA's Clear My Record initiative. Google.org is also granting $1.25 million to the National Urban League and Justice through Code, two organizations focused on providing skills training to formerly incarcerated job seekers beginning their careers in tech.

Three years after The Last Mile graduation I attended, it was an honor to sit down with Molly, a graduate who learned digital skills using Grow with Google’s curriculum. She is now employed as a Returned Citizen Advocate at The Last Mile.

Here’s what Molly had to say about her involvement with the program:

When you started learning digital skills at The Last Mile, where were you at in life?

I had just been released from Indiana Women’s Prison and was on a mission to find a new career. I was applying for multiple jobs while also looking for educational opportunities that would help build my skills and knowledge.

How comfortable were you with tech before and after you went inside?

I was incarcerated for three years. When I went in, I felt like I was very tech fluent, but when I was released, it seemed as though the entire tech world had changed. There were new norms and even how email was done felt unfamiliar. Different platforms and software were being used and I felt overwhelmed.

What was a highlight of the program?

The most important class that I took was a learning path called “Basic Digital Skills.” It helped me learn how to use documents and email efficiently. This was reinforced by The Last Mile because we regularly use both of these when communicating and collaborating.

What’s next for you?

Since participating, I secured a job as a Returned Citizen Advocate at The Last Mile. I went from using what I learned (like how to) write a resume, cover letter, apply for a job and interview, to securing a role that allows me to help other members of the community.

I’ve had the opportunity to pay it forward. Alumni are encouraged to participate in the program once they are released from prison. Because I have first-hand experience with the program, I can assist them with any questions and talk about the value and importance of each lesson or learning path from personal experience.

In the future, I plan to continue to support people that are returning to society, and to help people learn digital skills and expand their knowledge. My passion is to help those coming after me to be able to create and build the best future for themselves that is possible.

Encontrando pertenencia en espacios LGBTQ+

El Stonewall Inn, un pequeño bar en la ciudad de Nueva York donde en junio de 1969 las personas LGBTQ+ lucharon contra años de opresión y abuso, tiene un significado especial para muchas personas, incluyéndome a mí. Cuando me mudé a Nueva York en 2007, vivía en West Village, el barrio donde se encuentra el bar. Compartí muchas noches memorables y significativas con nuevos amigos en Stonewall y otros bares locales, donde sentimos un sentido de comunidad y pertenencia. Al ser una minoría en la mayoría de los demás establecimientos, es difícil explicar lo reconfortante que es entrar en un lugar y sentir que estás entre tu gente y no sentirte diferente o inseguro. Eso es lo que estos lugares eran para mí y millones de personas más.

La más significativa de esas noches de Stonewall Inn fue cuando conocí a mi futura esposa, Christine, una empresaria digital con su propia startup de medios LGBTQ+. Además de este trabajo, ella también era bartender allí los jueves por la noche. No hace falta decir que pasé más jueves por la noche allí de lo que debería, pero valió la pena.

Con tan buenos recuerdos de mi tiempo allí, me sorprendió saber que el Stonewall Inn tenía casi el doble del tamaño que tiene ahora cuando tuvo lugar la rebelión en 1969. A medida que aumentaban los alquileres en la ciudad de Nueva York, los arrendatarios se vieron obligados a alquilar parte del edificio, que ahora está en Christopher Street, 51.

Hoy, Google continúa con nuestro compromiso con la comunidad LGBTQ+ al apoyar a Pride Live, un grupo de defensa dedicado a la lucha por la igualdad LGBTQ+. Con casi $1 millón de dólares en apoyo de Google y Google.org, Pride Live está trabajando para asegurar el contrato de arrendamiento de Christopher Street, 51 para recomponer en su totalidad el Stonewall Inn y construir el Stonewall National Monument Education and Visitor Center. El 24 de junio, Pride Live celebrará la reunión de Stonewall Inn, con la invitada musical Kesha, en su evento anual "Stonewall Day".

Google se ha comprometido a preservar y compartir esta historia del movimiento moderno por los derechos LGBTQ+ en los EE. UU. En 2019, a través de subvenciones de Google.org por un total de 1,5 millones de dólares y el trabajo incansable de Googlers voluntarios, el Centro Comunitario LGBT de Nueva York conmemoró el 50º aniversario de los disturbios de Stonewall con el lanzamiento de Stonewall Forever, el primer "monumento interactivo " dedicado a la comunidad LGBTQ+ y su lucha por la igualdad de derechos.

Dentro de Google, nuestros grupos de recursos para empleados PRIDE at y Trans at Google continúan creciendo cada año. Es genial ver a tantos Googlers LGBTQ+ y sus aliados unirse a sus comunidades locales y participar en las marchas locales del Orgullo. Por primera vez, los Googlers participarán en Baltic Pride, organizado por la Liga Gay Lituana (un beneficiario de Google.org) en Vilnius. Mostraremos una pieza de Google Arts & Culture sobre Harvey Milk, quien fue un pionero de los derechos LGBTQ+ y tenía ascendencia lituana.

El objetivo delOrgullo no es solo de celebración. Ha sido otro año difícil para las personas LGBTQ+ y muchas comunidades históricamente marginadas. Vemos una continua discriminación y violencia en todo el mundo, especialmente contra la comunidad trans y para las personas en las intersecciones de las comunidades negras, asiáticas e isleñas del Pacífico en los EE. UU. Además, muchos refugiados LGBTQ+ en Ucrania siguen desplazados y son ignorados mientras el conflicto continúa

Dados los desafíos que enfrentan tantas personas LGBTQ+, estamos donando a organizaciones sin fines de lucro que trabajan directamente con la comunidad. Los empleados de Google podrán donar a organizaciones sin fines de lucro durante el mes del Orgullo y Google.org igualará sus donaciones paraorganizaciones benéficas LGBTQ+ locales de todo el mundo. Google.org también ha hecho una contribución crítica al Fondo de Emergencia de Ucrania de OutRight Action International. Este programa brinda apoyo humanitario a los refugiados LGBTQ+, brinda ayuda a los países vecinos y ayuda a aquellos que han sido desplazados internamente y afectados por el conflicto. También proporcionamos publicidad de búsqueda donada y otras herramientas a organizaciones sin fines de lucro como GLAAD y The Trevor Project, ayudando a difundir su trabajo fundamental y a cultivar el apoyo para las comunidades LGBTQ+.

También continuamos nuestro trabajo para hacer que nuestros productos sean más inclusivos y útiles para todos, incluida la comunidad LGBTQ+. Escuchamos directamente de los miembros de la comunidad transgénero que la forma en que Google Photos estaba recordando los momentosdel pasadodoloroso. Así que el año pasado trabajamos con GLAAD y con la comunidad trans y aprendimos cómo podíamos hacer para que recordar con Google Photos fuera más inclusivo. Este esfuerzo llevó al lanzamiento de nuevos controles que permiten a los usuarios ocultar fotos de ciertos períodos de tiempo o personas de la función Recuerdos de Google Photos.

Nuestros productos continúan ayudando a los propietarios de pequeñas empresas a conectarse con la comunidad LGBTQ+. Como la función de Google Maps que ayuda a los comerciantes a mostrar su compromiso mediante el uso de los atributos "LGBTQ+ friendly" y "Transgender safespace" y nuestros productos de Google Ads que ayudan a las empresas a conectarse con usuarios que buscan productos fabricados por empresas que coincidan con sus valores.

Mientras nuestra comunidad sigue siendo atacada tanto aquí en los EE. UU. como en el extranjero, lo que me da esperanza es el trabajo que hacemos en todos nuestros productos para ayudar a la comunidad LGBTQ+ a encontrar lugares donde puedan sentirse aceptados y seguros. Encontré Stonewall Inn y encontré a mi esposa. Muchos otros establecimientos, como el Stonewall Inn, juegan un papel vital para muchos en nuestra comunidad. Son más que simples lugares donde socializamos y nos reunimos, brindan un sentido de comunidad, pertenencia y seguridad que salva vidas y que todos merecen.