As my America Achieves colleagues and I close out the year, there is much to be grateful for and even more to be hopeful about. Recently, I read Heather McGhee’s The Sum of Us, and in it, she discusses the concept of a solidarity dividend, whereby gains in economic growth and generational wealth are made when communities come together across race, geographic boundaries and historical divides, and the outcomes benefit everyone.

As part of the White House Infrastructure Talent Pipeline Challenge and call to action this summer, President Biden announced today substantial commitments from across the country to equitable workforce development that supports good jobs building our nation’s infrastructure.

Last week, President Biden, joined by Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, announced nearly $1 billion in Phase II grants for 21 regions (out of 60 finalists) in the Economic Development Agency’s (EDA’s) Build Back Better Regional Challenge (BBBRC).

Sixty Regional Coalitions Building America’s Future and a Good Jobs Economy Later this morning at the White House, 60 extraordinary, bipartisan regional coalitions (selected by the U.S. Department of Commerce from 529 applicants) will be honored by President Biden, Secretary Gina Raimondo and others for their work.

What 60 Regional Economic Coalitions Can Teach Us about Intentionality, Trust, and Taking Account of the Past as We Imagine the Future