DALLAS, Aug. 6 /CSRwire - PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AT&T* today announced that it has increased its social and environmental investments despite the recent economic downturn. In its 2008 Citizenship and Sustainability Report released today, AT&T spotlights more than $865 million in multi-year investments for important education, environmental and volunteerism programs to help strengthen communities, stimulate economic growth and ensure America's global competitiveness.

"America's future depends not only on the investments that companies like ours make in our people and our communities, but also on how well those investments drive us to be more competitive globally," said Randall Stephenson, chairman and chief executive officer of AT&T. "That's why we're committed to investments with long-term benefits for AT&T and our country. I am proud of our employees, our programs and our progress as we continue on this journey."

The investments, many of which are highlighted in the report, help strengthen communities across the country, including:

• Education and Workforce Readiness: In 2008, AT&T launched AT&T Aspire, a $100 million multi-year education initiative to help stem the U.S. high school dropout crisis. The program, which is AT&T's most significant education initiative to date, is one of the largest corporate commitments ever to address high school success and workforce readiness. In its first year, the program supported four primary components: grants to schools and nonprofits, dropout prevention summits organized by America's Promise Alliance, dropout prevention research and an AT&T-wide job shadowing program - which, in its first year, has already enabled more than 13,000 students in 100 cities to shadow AT&T employees.
  
• Community Volunteerism: In 2008, AT&T employees and retirees volunteered 10.3 million hours of their time, worth more than $200 million**, to improve communities where they live and work. For example, AT&T partnered with the Communications Workers of America to support Share Our Strength's efforts to address childhood hunger during this year's National Day of Service. The effort collected and delivered more than 50,000 pounds of food to local area food banks in 39 metropolitan areas.
  
• A Cleaner Fleet: Earlier this year, AT&T announced plans to invest up to $565 million to roll out more than 15,000 alternative-fuel vehicles over the next 10 years. This means removing approximately 211,000 metric tons of emissions from communities where the fleet operates. This is the equivalent of removing approximately 38,000 passenger cars from the road for a year.

"Corporate responsibility and sustainability doesn't evaporate in a down economy, and in fact are more critical because the country's challenges are greater," said Charlene Lake, senior vice president of public affairs and chief sustainability officer. "We are committed to exploring the specific ways in which society's needs intersect with AT&T and, while we have made significant progress, we recognize the need for continual improvement."

In addition to these citizenship and sustainability initiatives, AT&T plans to invest $17 billion to $18 billion in 2009 capital expenditures. Approximately two-thirds of AT&T's 2009 investment will extend and enhance AT&T's wireless and wired broadband networks to provide more coverage, speed and capacity to support increased consumer demand.

AT&T has also made progress on measuring corporate-wide CO2 emissions and determining base lines with a plan to disclose AT&T's domestic carbon footprint by the end of 2009. Finally, AT&T launched an employee Web site, EcoSystem, dedicated to providing information to nearly 300,000 employees worldwide on AT&T's environmental and conservation efforts.

For the first time, the report is aligned with the Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) G3 Guidelines. The GRI Sustainability Reporting Guidelines provide a framework for organizations to report on their social, environmental and economic performance and was used to develop AT&T's report. AT&T also details in the report a set of goals to help guide and measure its progress. A complete list of AT&T's citizenship and sustainability goals is available at www.att.com/csr.

Download the full version of "Connecting for a Sustainable Future" online at www.att.com/csr. An executive summary is also available online.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

**The financial equivalent is determined by using $19.51/per volunteer hour, which is based on the industry standard from http://www.independentsector.org/programs/research/volunteer_time.html

About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates - AT&T operating companies - are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation's fastest 3G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet and voice services. AT&T offers the best wireless coverage worldwide, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse(SM) and AT&T | DIRECTV(SM) brands. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T's Yellow Pages and YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations are known for their leadership in directory publishing and advertising sales. In 2009, AT&T again ranked No. 1 in the telecommunications industry on FORTUNE(R) magazine's list of the World's Most Admired Companies.

Cautionary Language Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
Information set forth in this news release contains financial estimates and other forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially. A discussion of factors that may affect future results is contained in AT&T's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. AT&T disclaims any obligation to update or revise statements contained in this news release based on new information or otherwise.

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