In 1999, The Golden LEAF Foundation began transforming North Carolina’s economy and bringing economic opportunities to its people. Twenty years since then, it goes without saying that the foundation has made quite the impact.
While their operations are widespread, Golden LEAF targets a lot of its efforts on the state’s less-developed rural areas. To highlight the progress the foundation has encouraged over the past two decades, our production team worked with two communications representatives to coordinate eight interviews spread across multiple months of filming.
With Golden LEAF’s financial roots in the master settlement agreement between tobacco companies and the state of North Carolina, the organization has a lot of capital to put toward its projects, particularly in counties that have historically been tobacco-dependent.
The foundation’s integration of industries and entities in North Carolina allows for efficient identification of areas in need of development. The broadband initiative has granted North Carolinians access to education and job networks they didn’t have before, and agricultural aid has allowed for the diversification of the industry.
The Golden LEAF Foundation has invested more than $1 billion in North Carolina and connected communities to resources on a vast scale. Triad is proud to have showcased the work they have done and to offer a glimpse into the foundation’s golden future.