REDMOND, Wash. — Sept. 20, 2012 — Microsoft Corp. today announced a new global initiative, Microsoft YouthSpark,
that aims to create opportunities for 300 million youth in more than
100 countries during the next three years. This companywide initiative
includes citizenship and other company programs — both new and enhanced —
that empower youth to imagine and realize their full potential by
connecting them with greater opportunities for education, employment and
entrepreneurship.
Through Microsoft YouthSpark, the company will dedicate the
majority of its cash contributions to nonprofits that serve the youth
population around the world. In addition, Microsoft YouthSpark will
include Office 365 for education, free technology tools for all teachers
and students to power learning and collaboration, and Skype in the
classroom, a free global community for teachers to connect their
students with others around the world.
As part of the initiative, Microsoft is also launching a range of new citizenship programs:
• Give for Youth, a global microgiving marketplace focused on raising funds for nonprofits that support youth causes around the world.
• Microsoft YouthSpark Hub,
an online space where people can explore and access all the youth
services, programs and resources provided by Microsoft and its nonprofit
partners.
• Microsoft Innovate for Good,
a global online community enabling youth to collaborate, inspire and
support one another while using technology to make a difference in their
communities.
Launching the new initiative, Microsoft Chief Executive Officer
Steve Ballmer said, “Through Microsoft YouthSpark we are making a
commitment to help 300 million young people around the world achieve
their dreams by focusing our citizenship efforts and other company
resources on connecting young people with opportunities for education,
employment and entrepreneurship. We believe that working with our
partners we can help empower young people to change their world, and we
are committed to using our technology, talent, time and resources to do
that.”
The company’s youth-focused philanthropy will be conducted in
close collaboration with nonprofits around the world. These include
worldwide organizations such as GlobalGiving Foundation, TakingITGlobal,
Telecentre.org Foundation and the International Youth Foundation, as
well as regional nonprofits such as Silatech in the Middle East, The
Trust for Americas in Latin America, AIESEC International in Europe, and
the ASEAN Foundation in Asia. In the United States, Microsoft is
announcing its support of five national nonprofits: Boys & Girls Clubs of America, City Year, Junior Achievement USA, Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship and Year Up Inc.
“Our next generation of citizenship will focus on the next
generation of people,” said Brad Smith, general counsel and executive
vice president, Microsoft. “The global unemployment rate for workers
younger than 25 is 12.7 percent, which is double the rate for the world
as a whole. This is indicative of a growing opportunity divide between
young people who have the access, skills and opportunities to be
successful and those who do not. We must work together to close the
opportunity divide for youth and help secure the future of this
generation and the future of our global economy.”
The International Youth Foundation Opportunity for Action report,
published in March 2012, showed that nearly 75 million young people
worldwide were unemployed in 2011. As the global youth population
continues to grow — there are more than 2.2 billion people between the
ages of 6 and 24 today — the opportunity divide is widening.
Microsoft YouthSpark goes beyond philanthropy and brings together
a range of global programs that empower young people with access to
technology and a better education and inspire young people to imagine
the opportunities they have to realize their potential, including
previously mentioned Office 365 for education and Skype in the
classroom, as well as the following:
• Partners in Learning.
A professional development program for government officials, school
leaders and educators to help them with new approaches to teaching and
learning, using technology to help students develop 21st century skills.
• Microsoft IT Academy.
A career-ready education program available to all accredited academic
institutions, providing students with 21st century technology.
• DreamSpark.
Free access to Microsoft designer and developer tools for students and
educators, helping advance key technical skills during the high school
and college years, a critical time in a student’s development.
• Imagine Cup.
The world’s premier youth technology competition, which challenges
students to apply their knowledge and passion to develop technical
solutions for social impact, to develop engaging games, and to
demonstrate innovation that can benefit others, local communities and
the world.
• Students to Business. A program that matches university students with jobs or internships in the technology industry.
• BizSpark.
A software startup program, providing young entrepreneurs with access
to Microsoft software development tools and connections with key
industry players, including investors, to help them start a new
business.
A full list of Microsoft YouthSpark programs can be found at the YouthSpark Hub.
The YouthSpark feature story
provides more information on how U.S. nonprofit organizations are using
the new Microsoft funding and a picture slide show of youth stories.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader
in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses
realize their full potential.
Note to editors: For more information, news and perspectives from Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft News Center at http://www.microsoft.com/news.
Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of
publication, but may have changed. For additional assistance,
journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or
other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/news/contactpr.mspx.
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