It is may sound crazy to think that the county at the heart of Silicon Valley has a total of 7,400 homeless people. That’s correct. The fabled plot of land which starts from San Jose all the way to Palo Alto and connected by the 101 freeway plus the Interstate 280 has the highest levels of wealth and smarts. The area also, according to tech giant Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO), the third-highest rate of homelessness compared to any county in the country.
Many may not have known this. For anyone who has been to San Francisco already knows very well that the once beautiful city is descending into a hell hole of pathetic, disgusting conditions, a human catastrophe, and is good a good example of lack of political goodwill one is likely to find anywhere. In San Francisco, you can literally walk next to a drug-addled, deeply sick person screaming at the top of their voice on your way to meet at a multi-billion-dollar innovator like Twitter Inc (NYSE: TWTR) and Uber.
The main problem is just as worse down south, as city people like to call “the Valley.” And Cisco, an old company which may not even be as sexy as many San Francisco startups but has shown that it is built to last for years to come, seem to be doing something about the situation. On Monday the company unveiled a $50-million grant to a San Jose-based organization, which is called Destination: Home. This money will be used in building housing and, most importantly, offering services to the many homeless people. Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins in a statement said the move is an investment in a place which has been so good to the company—the place where very many people are lucky not just to work, but to own a home.
Robbins is very passionate and committed to the topic of corporations which he says act as a driving force for good in the world. Cisco is focusing on helping people and communities far and wide since its business has an impact on may people. But the company is especially interested in its own homeward. More Silicon Valley companies need to follow this example.