The Estée Lauder Companies and NBCUniversal Partner to Help Develop Emerging Creators

The Estée Lauder Companies’ (ELC) WRITING CHANGE Initiative and NBCUniversal’s Creative Impact Lab announced a new collaboration that seeks to help develop the next generation of storytellers. Through this partnership, NBCUniversal and ELC are amplifying the work of their mutual nonprofit partner Wide Angle Youth Media, a Baltimore-based nonprofit creative agency that provides media and arts education to youth.  

“We’re excited to partner with The Estée Lauder Companies to advance our shared goal of developing future storytellers,” said Hilary Smith, Executive Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility at NBCUniversal. “This partnership showcases how two companies can join forces and further our collective impact.”  

Through a grant from ELC’s WRITING CHANGE Initiative, emerging creative professionals from Wide Angle Youth Media were invited to turn the cameras on themselves and tell the story of their organization’s mission and positive impact. The Wide Angle Youth Media apprentices received guidance and mentorship from NBCUniversal creative advisors, including an NBCU Local executive and a Cable Entertainment creative director. The storytellers gained hands-on experience, while highlighting the organization that provides them with meaningful media and arts opportunities. The PSA will be distributed across Comcast and NBCUniversal platforms in donated media inventory and shared across ELC’s digital and social channels.

The WRITING CHANGE Initiative was created in partnership with National Youth Poet Laureate and Estée Lauder Global Changemaker, Amanda Gorman, to support nonprofits expanding access to literacy resources and advocating for representation in the arts. 

“I’m so proud to unveil this powerful PSA, created by some of Baltimore’s brightest youth visionaries at Wide Angle Youth Media,” said Amanda Gorman. “It is incredible to be part of this collaboration with companies that share my passion for storytelling and dedication to supporting the next generation of content creators.” 
 
“Nonprofit and corporate partnerships can be truly transformative when united by a shared commitment to social impact,” said Susan Malone, Executive Director of Wide Angle Youth Media. “Having NBCUniversal and The Estée Lauder Companies invest in our students and young professionals, while amplifying Wide Angle Youth Media’s mission to a national audience, will catalyze our work at an exciting time. As we approach our 25th anniversary this fall, this visionary collaboration is a powerful way to mark the milestone and inspire the next generation of emerging creatives.”

As a global leader in prestige beauty, The Estée Lauder Companies has long believed in the importance of creativity and artistic expression in driving social impact. Launched in 2021, ELC’s WRITING CHANGE Initiative supports nonprofit organizations and programs in the United States that provide access to literacy and education resources, advocate for representation in literature, and encourage artistic expression. WRITING CHANGE aims to reach artists and writers in emerging and established institutions, with a focus on girls and gender-expansive youth.    

About NBCUniversal   

NBCUniversal is one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies. We create world-class content, which we distribute across our portfolio of film, television, and streaming, and bring to life through our theme parks and consumer experiences. We own and operate leading entertainment and news brands, including NBC, NBC News, MSNBC, CNBC, NBC Sports, Telemundo, NBC Local Stations, Bravo, USA Network, and Peacock, our premium ad-supported streaming service. We produce and distribute premier filmed entertainment and programming through Universal Filmed Entertainment Group and Universal Studio Group and have world-renowned theme parks and attractions through Universal Destinations & Experiences. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.  

About NBCUniversal’s Creative Impact Lab   

Founded in 2022, the NBCUniversal Creative Impact Lab harnesses a one-of-a-kind model to commission apprentices from creative nonprofit agencies to develop marketing assets for other nonprofit organizations – helping them create awareness and scale their impact. This Creative Impact Lab has supported 138 apprentices and 40 nonprofit clients to-date. NBCUniversal volunteers, who work in creative roles across the company, serve as advisors on each storytelling project. The finished assets are showcased in donated promotional time on the platforms of Comcast and NBCUniversal. This award-winning initiative has received four Anthem Awards, four Telly Awards, a NYX Award, a MarCom Award and more. 

About Wide Angle Youth Media

Through media arts education, Wide Angle Youth Media collaborates with and amplifies the voices of Baltimore youth to engage audiences across social divides. Our programs inspire creativity and instill confidence in young people, supporting them to navigate school, career, and life. Since 2000, Wide Angle Youth Media has worked with over 8,295 youth from across Baltimore City who have produced thousands of media projects about their lives and communities.