Originally published in Southern Company's 2023 Sustainability Summary
Our mission to provide clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy is about more than our bottom line. We are committed to supporting and improving our communities and environment at the local level and beyond, while conducting business with honesty, integrity and fairness. We are involved in the development of our communities, the education of our young people, supporting causes our customers feel strongly about and taking care of our elderly, needy and disabled.
Charitable Giving and Volunteerism
Our employee volunteer efforts and economic development initiatives are focused on making communities thrive for generations to come.
- Southern Company and our subsidiaries weave together philanthropic programs, community convenings, non-profit board leadership, and employee volunteerism to create positive momentum in the communities where we serve, live, and play.
- Employees and retirees play a critical role in our communities through their substantial volunteer efforts. In 2023, employees volunteered over 150,000 hours of their time.
Alabama Power Foundation is a proud contributor to Jones Valley Teaching Farm (JVTF). JVTF operates eight vibrant Teaching Farms throughout Birmingham including seven located at Birmingham City Schools campuses. During the 2022-2023 academic year, they reached 5,141 students, employed six paid apprentices and interns, distributed more than 19,435 pounds of produce for free, and grew 74,796 seedlings.
“Our business is different from nearly all other businesses that I know. When we go to a place, we go not as tourists, not as transients, not as promoters and not as tenants. When and where we go, we build and construct a permanent character that can never be moved away. Our first act upon arrival constitutes that we have selected that particular place in which to become a citizen. Not for just an hour, not for just a day, but for always.” – Preston Arkwright, first President of Georgia Power, 1902