Everyone should have access to digital skills. New grants aim to help

i.c. stars tech diversity program at Microsoft

i.c.stars is a rigorous, tech-focused program that provides young adults from low-income communities with the tools to develop the technical and leadership skills needed for a career in technology, a field that continues to lack diversity and be in high demand. Programs like this are vital to accelerating the distribution of digital skills. Microsoft launched a new community skills grant program, part of the company's commitment to racial equity and digital skills. It will include a $15 million investment over three years for Black- and African American-led nonprofits that are working to increase skill development and economic opportunities. The program includes grants, leadership development and technology enablement. To read more about the funding opportunity and i.c. stars, visit Microsoft On The Issues.

More from GZERO Media

- YouTube

China is conducting near-daily military exercises in the Taiwan Strait and the risk of conflict is getting higher. Could Beijing and Taipei be heading toward war? Ian Bremmer sits down with Bonny Lin, director of the China Power Project at CSIS.

Protesters are blanketed in smoke along Alondra Boulevard during a standoff with law enforcement following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in the Los Angeles County city of Compton, California, U.S., June 7, 2025.
REUTERS/Barbara Davidson

On Saturday, US President Donald Trumpdeployed 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles to quell protests against ICE immigration raids.

View of what state media KCNA reported was a test-firing of the weapons system of the new "Choe Hyon-class" warship, in this picture released on April 30, 2025, by the Korean Central News Agency.
via REUTERS

Welcome to the new global arms race: faster, smarter, more dangerous and more expensive than ever. In 2024, world military spending surged toa record $2.7 trillion, the steepest annual increase since the Cold War's end, driven largely by European, Asian and Middle Eastern nations.

Inter Miami Forward Lionel Messi controls the ball during the first half of an MLS match against the Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park in Chester, Pennsylvania, on May 24, 2025.
Kyle Rodden/CSM/Sipa USA

The FIFA Club World Cup kicks off on Saturday, with the United States acting as hosts for a competition of the top teams on the globe.