The NEW World of Coca-Cola
A TRADITION OF COMMUNITY SUPPORT
From its beginnings in the late 19th century when Atlanta was building
its commercial and economic base,
The Coca-Cola Company has served as a catalyst for progress. Over
the years the company has made significant
civic and financial contributions that have, in turn, supported and
strengthened the city that Atlanta has become.
The company’s presence can be felt all across the city –
through its universities, civic and nonprofit institutions,
and its public spaces.
Giving back locally has long been a company priority, and that tradition
of community support continues today at
Pemberton Place. Named for Dr. John S. Pemberton, the pharmacist who
invented Coca-Cola® in Atlanta in 1886,
the 20-acre complex is currently home to the Georgia Aquarium and
the NEW World of Coca-Cola® (opening May 2007).
Quick Facts: Pemberton Place and Atlanta Impact
- Land Grants: The Coca-Cola Company donated nine acres
to the Georgia Aquarium and 2.5 acres to the City of Atlanta for
construction of a human rights center.
- Green Space for Atlanta: The land between the New World of Coca-Cola
and Georgia Aquarium adds five acres of green space to downtown
Atlanta.
- The Impact:* The combined estimated economic impact of the Georgia
Aquarium and the New World of Coca-Cola is more than
$105 million per year for Atlanta.
- Jobs: The two attractions will create more than 2,700 direct
and induced permanent jobs.
- Visitation: One million people are expected to visit the New
World of Coca-Cola annually.
- 19 percent of the attraction’s visitors are expected
to come from overseas.
- Estimates indicate that 44 percent of out-of-town visitors
to Pemberton Place will stay over night in local hotels
resulting in more than $1 million in tax revenue per year.
Key Milestones: Coca-Cola and Atlanta Impact
The company’s long history of community support includes:
- Asa Candler, a company founder, donated $1 million to help defray
the costs of establishing Emory University.
- Robert Woodruff, president of The Coca-Cola Company
for 60 years, led the effort to secure the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) headquarters. The CDC’s annual economic
impact in Georgia is $2.5 million.
- Brothers Robert and George Woodruff donated approximately $105
million to Emory University in 1979, which at that time was the
largest single gift to an educational institution in the nation’s
history.
- Centennial Olympic Park received a gift of $33 million from The
Coca-Cola Company (nearly half of the park’s total
cost).
- The Coca-Cola Company contributed $10 million to
support the construction of a new Symphony Hall.
- The company contributed $1 million (including in-kind support)
to the Brand Atlanta Campaign.
- The company sold the building for the current World of Coca-Cola
to the State of Georgia for a fraction of its appraised value.
Along with many of its local bottlers, The Coca-Cola Company makes
a significant impact on communities in each country where it operates.
Estimates indicate that for every job within The Coca-Cola Company
system, 10 additional jobs are created locally. In addition, the company
devotes resources to a number of community-based initiatives around
the world, including:
Did you Know?
Around the World: The Coca-Cola Company Citizenship Highlights
- Vietnam: Launched the Coca-Cola Pushcart Project,
which has provided pushcarts, initial product and sales training
for more than 4,000 disadvantaged Vietnamese women since 2002.
- Kenya: Partnered with CARE to bring wells and water storage facilities
to 45 schools in western Kenya.
- China: Helped build 57 schools and more than 100 libraries in
impoverished areas through a partnership with The China Youth Development
Foundation called Project Hope.
- Italy: Created programs to encourage physical activity around
the world, such as “Schools in Motion” in Italy, in which
more than 130,000 students from 1,200 schools have participated.
- Uganda: Helped to build a state-of-the-art wastewater treatment
plant that reduces water usage and returns treated water to the
community for irrigation.
- Equador: Partnered with the Galapagos Foundation to establish
a recycling education center. As part of the project, approximately
8,700 kg of recycled goods are collected each month.
- United States: The Coca-Cola Foundation awarded more
than $26 million in higher-education scholarships to 3,250 students
in the United States since 1986.
- Global: The company and foundation spent $76 million on community
projects in 2005.
Visit worldofcoca-cola.com
*Source: Dr. Bruce Seaman, Associate Professor of Economics,
Georgia State University, Policy Research Center
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