The Lowe’s Foundation launched the Building Futures Skilled Trades Coalition on Sept. 2, 2026, in Mooresville, North Carolina, aiming to train and prepare 1 million people for skilled-trades careers by 2035. More than 75 educators, companies, workforce organizations, industry suppliers and other stakeholders joined, including AT&T, NVIDIA, Bank of America, Carrier, General Motors, DEWALT and Duke Energy. AT&T’s participation connects the initiative to its fiber and 5G expansion, copper-network retirement and broader demand for technicians who build, maintain and upgrade communications infrastructure. AT&T shares rose 1.12% to $26.29, while the company’s market value was near $177.4 billion. The coalition is responding to retirements and rising infrastructure investment, with Department of Education estimates indicating that 2.1 million skilled-trades positions could go unfilled by 2030 and potentially cause economic losses of up to $1 trillion annually. Its work will focus on recruitment, career awareness, training, certification, employer connections and shared employment measures. The initiative builds on the Lowe’s Foundation’s Gable Grants program, launched in 2023, and its $250 million commitment to train and develop 250,000 skilled-trades professionals by 2035.