It seems that amidst the financial turmoil that has ravaged economies worldwide and left hundreds of thousands of people jobless celebrities in Hollywood are doing their every bit to not let the ripples affect the nation’s youth. A few weeks ago Oprah Winfrey donated a million pounds to the education system of New Jersey and most recently pop superstar Shakira announced the building a school at the cost of $6 million in her native land.

This time it is hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas who have taken the initiative to launch a youth academy with the sole purpose of giving the less privileged children in California a chance to get involved and create a something out of music and film programs.

Speaking about the new initiative Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am says, “As a group, we’ve made a commitment to help give teens the artistic tools and opportunities to help them realize their fullest potential. Thanks to the incredible generosity of Adobe Youth Voices, we are able to expand our vision and give even more kids a chance to be productive, enterprising adults.”

Such efforts are really the new super cool things that celebrities can do as their bit for the community they have lived in and its time that such initiatives are highlighted so that others’ too get inspired to follow in the same tracks.