Anne Rice is the founder and executive director of Sustainable Georgia Futures (SGF), a Black-women-led, nonpartisan, grassroots organization and collective of expert organizers and community leaders dedicated to building power in Georgia’s marginalized communities to advance an inclusive economy and promote environmental justice. SFG has demonstrated these commitments through their paid fellowship program that provides climate change education, community training, workshops, and monthly Climate Justice Education meetings that build consensus on issues and address and devise action plans. Rice is planning to expand their established WeatherRise energy efficiency program that provides weatherization improvements for low to moderate-income Black households in Atlanta. Moreover, SGF has been working with local organizations to develop a pilot Solar Pre-Apprenticeship Program that would provide program members with hands-on experience with Atlanta-based solar installers in order to ensure that people of color have equitable opportunities to be hired in the wave of solar-related jobs. Rice stated that systemic environmental racism is a key contributing factor to the disproportionate energy burdens on low to moderate-income Black households in the city, alongside unequal wages and lack of access to affordable housing. Addressing these burdens requires a shift in how society approaches and supports marginalized communities. SGF works to recognize the interconnectedness of workforce development, climate change, and systemic racism and uplifting black and brown communities through opportunities. By doing so, they aim to dismantle oppressive systems and create positive change.
