Louisville, Ky. (December 15, 2022) – Greater Louisville Inc. (GLI) released a new report detailing progress made by Greater Louisville businesses over the past year and a half in advancing economic equity. The report shares intel and success stories from signers of GLI’s Racial Equity Pledge, which was launched in the spring of 2021.

The report includes testimonials from the Frazier History Museum, Frost Brown Todd, Louisville MSD, Presentation Academy High School, and Trilogy Health Services, who signed the pledge in 2021 and each took actionable steps towards equity and inclusion within their organizations and in the broader community.

“I applaud the business leaders who have shown their commitment to address the challenges many of our community members face daily,” said Sarah Davasher-Wisdom, president and CEO of Greater Louisville Inc. “We launched the Racial Equity Pledge to inspire action and make tangible strides to create a more equitable region. What we see in this report is not only individual success stories but also evidence that our community as a whole is making strides to be more inclusive.”

More than 230 business leaders from over 170 companies in 16 different industries signed the pledge and committed to pursuing inclusivity for underrepresented and marginalized communities. The pledge was born out of GLI’s Business Council to End Racism and was created with guidance from Condrad Daniels, president of HJI Supply Chain Solutions.

The pledge challenged the region’s business community to build a more inclusive economy by focusing on five guiding principles, including instituting formal diversity, equity, and inclusion policies, developing and empowering Black talent, supporting Black-owned business through equitable vendor spend, championing transparency, and building empathy through mentorship. The signers highlighted in the report address these areas and many went above and beyond these principles.

“It is incredibly inspiring to see organizations putting in the work to make our community more welcoming and a place where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive,” said Daniels. “While GLI could only highlight five businesses in this report, I know there are many more in our community doing the work behind the scenes. This is difficult and daunting work, so I commend any business who is taking action for their continued progress.”

View the full report here. More information about the Racial Equity Pledge, including a list of frequently asked questions and an up-to-date list of signers, can be found here. Funding for the inclusion pillar of GLI’s NOW Louisville strategic plan was made possible by Thornton’s, Humana, and many other Greater Louisville businesses.

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About Greater Louisville Inc.

Greater Louisville Inc. - the Metro Chamber of Commerce is focused on growing the regional economy. As the region’s largest convener of business leadership, GLI leads economic and global outreach strategies focused on business attraction; nurtures the entrepreneurial eco-system; and champions the development of the community’s talent base.  As the voice of Greater Louisville’s business community, GLI advocates for a pro-business environment and facilitates businesses engagement on issues that impact regional competitiveness.  For more information, visit www.greaterlouisville.com.