Month: April 2025

By Candace Higginbotham

The world of personal finance is changing rapidly.

With the increased use of digital currencies and other technological advancements, along with the continued threat of fraud, it’s a complex environment that can be challenging for consumers to keep up with.

It’s more important than ever that everyone has a basic understanding of how money works and how to manage it. But according to the World Economic Forum, financial literacy in the U.S. has hovered around 50 percent for eight consecutive years, with a 2 percent drop in the past two years.

“Increasing financial wellness is the right thing to do – to ensure that every person has the opportunity for financial success.”

Leroy Abrahams, head of Community Engagement at Regions

Regions is doing its part to help turn that around. In honor of Financial Literacy Month, the bank is launching a comprehensive financial wellness blitz that will continue throughout April.

Financial wellness is firmly rooted in the culture at Regions. It’s part of the company’s mission to make life better and create shared value for customers and communities.

“Increasing financial wellness is the right thing to do – to ensure that every person has the opportunity for financial success,” said Leroy Abrahams, head of Community Engagement at Regions.

“But it’s also an investment. When people have a greater understanding of their finances they make better decisions. By establishing a better situation today for themselves and their families, they’re also building generational wealth and creating a healthier economy. And that benefits all of us.”

Regions executes on its commitment to financial wellness in several ways. The bank provides easily accessible, no-cost financial education courses to anyone, whether they’re a Regions customer or not. Regions Next Step^® curriculum includes customized tools, online resources, webinars, podcasts and in-person sessions covering topics ranging from budgeting, to saving and understanding credit, to insights for small-business owners, college students and people planning for retirement – and every life event and milestone in between.

“Building Financial Confidence” is the theme for this year’s Share the Good program, and associates across Regions’ markets will be working with community partners all month to host financial education events for a variety of audiences.

Examples include:

• Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville: In these Florida markets, Regions teams are working with the Women’s Council of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers local chapters to conduct Regions Next Step Path to Homeownership program to an audience of first-time homebuyers.
• Huntsville, Ala.: As part of Regions Day at Alabama A&M University, a historically Black college or university (HBCU) in the bank’s home state, up to 500 students are expected to participate in a Regions Next Step Reality Check budget simulation. The bank is also hosting Regions Day financial wellness events at two other HBCUs, Tennessee State University and Jackson State University.
• Jackson, Miss.: Regions is hosting a fraud-prevention session for small-business owners and nonprofit leaders. Working with the Mississippi Alliance for Nonprofits and Philanthropy, Regions Branch Manager Jason Morris will lead the session at the organization’s Nonprofit and Philanthropy Leadership Conference & Annual Meeting on April 25 at the Jackson Convention Complex.
• Austin, Texas: To help ensure students of Del Valle Early College High School/ P-Tech Center are prepared for success, Regions teams will be onsite to deliver Reality Check sessions. “Regions is proud to support these hardworking students, and we’re looking forward to ‘Sharing the Good’ at Del Valle once again in April,” said Stephanie Perryman, Regions Bank Market Executive and Commercial Banking Leader in Austin.
• Birmingham: Regions teams are presenting the Regions Next Step Money Basics for Life program at Disability Rights & Resources. On April 14, clients will take part in the Credit and Identity Theft course, part of a curriculum to enhance independent living skills and help people with disabilities learn to make good financial decisions. The bank was honored last year by the American Bankers Association Foundation for this groundbreaking financial wellness program.
• New Orleans: Regions has a longstanding relationship with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Louisiana and has facilitated financial education programs in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge markets for several years. Local teams are collaborating with BCG this month to present three Reality Check sessions: April 8 in Covington, Aprill 22 in Slidell and April 23 in Gretna.

Along with community events, Regions bankers and branch associates will be hosting financial wellness activities throughout the month.

Examples include:

• Building Better Money Habits: Regions will host webinars on April 8 and 24 that provide guidance for consumers looking to increase their savings, build financial stability and improve credit scores.
• Students and Parents: A Regions Extra Credit event, held live and via webcast on April 24, provides important information for high school juniors and seniors, their parents and school administrators, such as budgeting, financial aid, fraud prevention, investing and more. Participants in the Birmingham area may join in person at the Regions Riverchase Operations Center, or anyone can join online from 4:30-5:30 CT. Click here to register.
• Small Businesses: Regions’ bankers will be providing free workshops and seminars, in person and virtually, for small-business owners and their employees throughout the month. Anyone interested can contact a Regions representative at their local branch.

Like financial wellness, giving back is a key part of Regions’ culture and community engagement strategy. So, aligning these efforts in April – which is also National Volunteer Month – emphasizes the importance of both at the bank.

“April is always an exciting time at Regions,” said Gina Sian, head of the Regions Making Life Better Institute. “As we celebrate both Volunteer and Financial Literacy Month, adding our Share the Good campaign to the mix gives our associates a perfect opportunity to volunteer together and share the ‘goodness’ and importance of financial education to young ones and young once, at schools, businesses and nonprofit organizations.”

Approximately 1.6 million people received financial education from Regions in 2024. Volunteers, including certified Regions Next Step Ambassadors, are specially trained to deliver the material and present tailored courses to K-12 and college students, small-business owners, new homeowners, veterans, people with disabilities, seniors and more.

The full array of Regions Next Step financial wellness resources can be found at www.regions.com/nextstep. Examples of how associates work with community partners to deliver these programs can be found in the annual Shared Value Report and the Community Engagement section of Regions’ news website, Doing More Today.

In celebration of International Earth Day, 20 employees from AEG Germany’s Barclays Arena in Hamburg came together to transform and beautify the landscape around the arena into a greener, more vibrant space for the whole community.

Equipped with shovels, gloves, and watering cans, the group spent the day planting a total of 412 new plants and sowing flower seeds across the green areas surrounding the arena and its parking lots. The effort was aimed at enhancing biodiversity and beautifying the environment for both visitors and local wildlife.

“Today is about more than just planting flowers. It’s a reminder that small acts, like adding greenery, contribute to the bigger picture of environmental care and help us build a more sustainable future,” said Steve Schwenkglenks, Managing Director, Barclays Arena.

The project is part of the arena’s broader environmental strategy, which includes waste reduction, energy efficiency, and community-driven green projects. Earlier this year, AEG Europe’s Uber Arena, Uber Eats Music Hall and Uber Platz in Berlin and the Barclays Arena became the first sports and entertainment venues in Germany to receive Greener Arena (AGF) certification. To achieve AGF certification, our team provided a detailed analysis of areas of sustainability such as transport, energy and power, waste, water usage, local environment, CO2 and food and beverage activities and included an onsite visit by qualified AGF assessors.

To learn more about AEG Europe’s commitment to sustainability, please click here.

Southern Company

ATLANTA, April 24, 2025 /3BL/ – Southern Company Gas today announced that Venessa Harrison, former president of AT&T’s Southeast Coastal States, has been elected to the company’s board of directors, effective April 24.

As president of AT&T’s South Coastal States, Harrison led transformational wireless and wireline deployment efforts for the company’s critical infrastructure across Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, including the strategic direction of AT&T’s network investment, public policy, economic development and community engagement activities throughout the region.

Additionally, she helped shape public policy in areas of telecom and tax reform, and has represented the telecommunications industry before multiple state legislatures and public service commissions regarding infrastructure matters.  She oversaw nearly $2 billion in network spend annually – spend that has supported the expansion of AT&T Georgia’s fiber network to more than 6.4 million strand miles and wireless network to nearly 100 percent of the state’s geographic footprint.

Harrison also spearheaded the groundbreaking development of the North Carolina Next Generation Network (NCNGN) within AT&T. This innovative collaboration among diverse community leaders and governments resulted in the NCNGN partnership serving as a template for other states to accelerate broadband success.

“Venessa’s proven leadership and expertise in expanding critical infrastructure, shaping smart public policy and developing innovative customer solutions makes her a great fit for our board of directors as we navigate the essential role natural gas is expected to play in serving increased energy demand across our service territories,” said Southern Company Gas Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer James Y. (Jim) Kerr II. “Moreover, Venessa’s demonstrated commitment to making a positive impact in the communities where she lives and serves makes her a perfect fit for Southern Company Gas.”

Harrison currently serves on the executive boards of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, and on the boards of the Atlanta Committee for Progress, the Georgia Historical Society and the Georgia Research Alliance, an internationally acclaimed model for unifying business, research universities and state government to drive a vibrant economy. She has also served as trustee chair of North Carolina A&T, the largest historically Black university in the country and the number one producer of degrees awarded to African Americans in North Carolina.

Harrison earned a business administration degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Phoenix.

About Southern Company Gas
Southern Company Gas is a wholly owned subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE:SO), America’s premier energy company. Southern Company Gas serves approximately 4.4 million natural gas utility customers through its regulated distribution companies in Georgia, Illinois, Tennessee and Virginia, and more than 600,000 retail customers through its companies that market natural gas. Other nonutility businesses include investments in interstate pipelines, asset management for natural gas wholesale customers and ownership and operation of natural gas storage facilities. For more information, visit southerncompanygas.com.

SOURCE Southern Company Gas

For further information: Jeff Wilson, 404-245-4944, jeawilso@southernco.com

Previously published by Forbes

As we observe Earth Day 2025, the world stands at a critical juncture. This year’s theme, “Our Power, Our Planet,” is not just a slogan—it is a direct challenge to every leader, especially those at the helm of global supply chains, to harness the transformative potential of renewable energy and sustainable practices.

For supply chain executives, the message is clear: the path to a more sustainable planet runs directly through your operations, decisions, and influence.

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