Environment Program Director Moira Mcdonald introduces a new Walton Family Foundation storytelling series, The Ripple Effect, featuring women who are leading the way in protecting water resources in the face of climate change.

Echelon Insights cofounder Kristen Soltis Anderson and BSG vice president Shannon-Janean Currie share their insights into new polling that shows Americans find common ground on some of the country's most pressing issues. They also discuss what their research found about Americans' views on the role of nonprofits and philanthropies in helping advance solutions to solve those challenges.

Samantha Mitchell is a computer science teacher at Mayflower High School in Mayflower, Arkansas.

In Newark, New Jersey, middle school teacher Winston Roberts uses AI to help students learn financial literacy. The KIPP Bold Academy educator says AI holds incredible potential as a tool for teachers and students, especially those from less-privileged backgrounds.

The Learning Engineering Virtual Institute has released a new pilot chatbot designed to help parents and families find the school best suited to their children's needs.

The Math Hint Generator Chatbot, developed by The Learning Engineering Virtual Institute, draws material from vetted internet sources and a digital textbook. It is capable of writing sequences of targeted hints for a multitude of common errors.

The Learning Engineering Virtual Institute has developed a pilot chatbot tool that helps young readers through conversational exchanges that answers simple questions. The ChatGPT-powered tool gives evidence-based recommendations to help design learning plans for students.

"Everyone needs an education. Everybody has to have knowledge - and literacy is the foundation for everything," says Taurean Morton, state director for Reading Roadmap in Mississippi. The organization provides reading interventions for students in kindergarten through second grade, helping at-risk students in the Mississippi Delta region become fluent readers.

"No one knows a classroom better than someone who is in a classroom all day," says Sanford Johnson, executive director of Teach Plus in Mississippi. Teach Plus works to empower teachers to influence decisions that are going to improve the quality of education for students in the Mississippi Delta.

Real inclusion is about ensuring that people can afford housing and easily get around Northwest Arkansas to take advantage of all it offers. The foundation believes transportation challenges in the region can be solved by actively listening to the communities we serve. When everyone participates in creating transportation solutions, it improves access for everyone.

Matt Mosler founded Home Again Pine Bluff several years ago to begin revitalizing the city of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, block by block. The nonprofit organization renovates homes and rents them at below-market value. It’s also setting residents on the path to home ownership. After three to five years, tenants can purchase the property for half the appraised value.

Drew Smith is in the business of creating joy. Through his Helena, Arkansas-based nonprofit Delta Magic, Drew is connecting the dots between what people want and how to find it. The organization is playing a vital role in building the social infrastructure in the community.

An innovative bus service transports FedEx workers from small rural communities to and from their jobs. Pam Chatman’s idea has helped improve lives in the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta by opening new employment opportunities for the region’s resident.

Through Delta Circles, Patricia Ashanti is helping Black women in the region build financial stability and independence. But the Helena, Arkansas-based nonprofit is also doing much more. It’s become a place of fellowship and friendship, where Black women build connection and confidence in the future.

The Arkansas-Mississippi Delta is a region ripe with talent. But like so many rural parts of America, its potential is often overlooked. The Walton Family Foundation is committed to supporting the exceptional people building lasting impact here. We’re proud to share the stories of the incredible people changing their communities for the better.

Watch this featured conversation about the foundation’s support for Planet Forward and the work it’s doing to build a unique movement of young journalists telling the stories of people affected by climate change.

The Walton Family Foundation is working in collaboration with communities and leaders throughout the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta to build a lasting impact for its residents. Our new Delta strategy is rooted in community-driven change that removes historical inequities and creates opportunities for people to learn and lead a region brimming with potential.

Providing foreground to this session, a context around the DEAIB roles will launch the conversation into what DEAIB leaders need, seek, and see towards being able to have an impact, and openly sharing the place of the burden imposed often on the individuals in these roles.