Education & Workforce Development

As the global community prepares for the United Nations climate change conference beginning November 30 in Paris, National Geographic will dedicate its diverse portfolio of media properties to the coverage of climate change and climate science throughout the month of November. National Geographic Channel, National Geographic magazine, and NationalGeographic.com, each part of a proposed new venture between National Geographic and 21st Century Fox, will debut new content across television, print, and digital that explores the science behind climate change and the unique problems it poses to both our society and our planet.

We know the story. We know that, while tremendous progress has been made, a significant mentoring gap still exists in America for young people. We know that students from families and communities enduring economic hardship are less likely to grow up with adult mentors outside their family. As a result, these students are less likely to graduate high school and go on to college. We’ve heard it before, and we’ll likely hear it again – unless we choose to act differently.

I want to tell you a story. It’s one I know very well.

Discovery Education, the leading provider of digital content and professional development for K-12 classrooms, and DIRECTV, now part of the AT&T family, will host a live virtual event for classrooms nationwide on October 27 at 1 P.M. EST. Available at no cost to classrooms nationwide, this virtual experience will celebrate National Energy Awareness Month and ENERGY STAR® Day, a day devoted to encouraging individuals to make a commitment to an energy-saving action, by taking the ENERGY STAR Pledge.

As a former student, Riley Gowan understands how valuable a mobile classroom can be, especially for those students who can’t get to the college for instruction. With the new Mobile Trades Training Facility, supported by donations from TransCanada and the B.C. government, the classroom can go to them.

Southern California Edison power line worker Robert Gallagher reads to children at the Fullerton Public Library to educate kids about electrical safety.

One of a CEO’s toughest but most crucial roles is overseeing change within an organization. It’s not just a matter of making the tough decisions that change requires, but about being able to see the change approaching. Whether it’s change a company has chosen, or one that’s forced upon it, the process can only be guided by a leader who can effectively balance the public and human sides that change brings.

On both sides of the Atlantic last week, Mars leaders took to the stage to discuss the importance of running a business guided by strong principles. From a conference hall on the outskirts of London in the UK to a Washington, DC venue that attracted some of industry’s most powerful women, the message was clear: if you want to be successful, do business with purpose.