Neighborhood Collective Impact Projects

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Three women sit at a table in conversation with papers, pens, and a “Reserved” sign in front of them in a casual indoor setting. — Brooklyn Org Listening Tour, 2026

A panel of ten people sits on stage under a large screen reading "Deciding Brooklyn's Future BRIC BROOKLYN.ORG," addressing an audience in a dark theater. — Brooklyn Org and BRIC present "Deciding Brooklyn’s Future: Community Forum With Elected Officials" May 21, 2025. Photo by Paul Frangipane.

Since 2022, Brooklyn Org has visited every part of Brooklyn through our annual Neighborhood Listening Tours to hold conversations with local leaders and residents on the opportunities and challenges facing our communities.

In 2024, we launched the Neighborhood Collective Impact opportunity to provide up to $25,000 each for local nonprofits to address those concerns and build collaboration. In 2025, we focused on projects that promoted community engagement, local voices, and voter participation in the 2025 municipal election. In 2026, we invited proposals for projects that addressed key themes from our 2025 People’s Pulse survey, including affordability, public safety, and mental health.

Neighborhood Collective Impact Project Grantees

2026 Projects

Anti-Violence Workshops for Youth and Families in East Flatbush

Neighborhoods: East Flatbush; Flatbush; Prospect Lefferts Gardens
Nonprofit Partners: The Center for Anti-Violence Education and Flanbwayan Haitian Literacy Project

The Anti-Violence Workshops for Youth and Families is a public programming initiative led by the Center for Anti-Violence Education (CAE) and the Flanbwayan Haitian Literacy Project. The initiative provides Haitian youth and their families with workshops and tools focused on safety and violence prevention. Programming includes Empowerment Self-Defense workshops, safety trainings, and violence intervention and prevention sessions, as well as a year-long Peer Educators program that offers opportunities for connection, skill-building, advocacy, healing, access to mental health resources, and professional development.

Bed-Stuy University

Neighborhood: Bedford Stuyvesant
Nonprofit Partners: Magnolia Tree Earth Center and Liminal

The Bed-Stuy University is a collaborative project by Magnolia Tree Earth Center and Liminal that envisions a neighborhood-based platform for skill-building, housing stabilization, and cultural preservation. Responding to rising costs and displacement in Bed-Stuy, the project positions the Magnolia Tree Earth Center as the hub for this community-driven “university.” During this incubation phase, the initiative will engage youth and residents in developing foundational skills in spatial design, construction, real estate literacy, and experiential marketing, while building a network of residents, homeowners, and local businesses.

D13 Teach Fabulous! Family Engagement Initiative

Neighborhoods: Brooklyn’s Community School District 13, including Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Bedford-Stuyvesant, and surrounding communities
Nonprofit Partners: MJR Love and PFLAG NYC

The Teach Fabulous! Family Engagement Initiative will support the mental health and wellbeing of LGBTQ+ families, caregivers, and young people across District 13. Through workshops, caregiver support circles, and the development of culturally responsive resources, the initiative will help address isolation and strengthen support systems for Black and brown LGBTQ+ families. The project builds on existing work in schools to create safer, more inclusive environments for students and families.

2025 Projects

X Marks the SPOT

Neighborhood: Bedford Stuyvesant
Nonprofit Partners: Aster Initiative, Malcolm X Utica Avenue Merchant Association, 500 Men Making a Difference, Artemis Ecology & Arts Initiative

Malcolm X Utica Avenue Merchants Association (MUAMA) is spearheading a comprehensive community development and small business revitalization initiative called X Marks the SPOT with the goal of revitalizing the Malcolm X Boulevard business corridor. Through the development and implementation of a series of targeted community programs that will include a mix of cultural events, business promotions, and community gatherings, MUAMA aims to bolster support for local businesses.

ROOTED

Neighborhoods: Brownsville, East New York, Ocean Hill
Nonprofit partners: BlackSpace, Youth Design Center, Divine Explosion Arts Program (D.E.A.P.)

Blackspace will launch ROOTED, a seven-week paid fellowship where youth explore the relationship between urban planning, food justice, and community design. Youth fellows will work with a community garden and use storytelling, visual design, and environmental mapping to understand how land use policies and disinvestment shape food access—and to propose community-based design responses. Through ROOTED, youth will gain awareness of food insecurity and urban agriculture and help seed the future of food access in Brooklyn; they will share the findings of their projects at two community events.

Creative Conversations: Art and Dialogue for Racial Justice

Neighborhood: Red Hook
Nonprofit partners: Red Hook Art Project & Red Hook Community Justice Center

“Creative Conversations: Art and Dialogue for Racial Justice” is a collaboration between Red Hook Art Project (RHAP) and the Red Hook Community Justice Center to engage youth in creating zines focused on racial justice, community safety, and systemic racism. Through workshops, RHAP students and youth from the Justice Center will design and produce zines that combine art, stories, and educational content about racial justice. The zines will be distributed at local events and community centers, culminating in a public event where youth present their work and engage in discussions about the issues explored in the zines.

2024 Projects

Beyond Memorial

Neighborhoods: Brownsville and East New York
Nonprofit partners: Liminal SP and Brownsville Community Justice Center

The Beyond Memorial project aims to reclaim public spaces associated with gun violence and community trauma by incorporating thoughtful solutions such as intentional lighting in place of NYPD light towers that cause sound and light pollution; hosting nighttime activations in under-utilized spaces to deter crime; and incorporating creative-environmental strategies to improve safety conditions at the Rockaway Ave. 3 train station.

Cultivate Green

Neighborhoods: East Flatbush, Flatbush, Flatlands
Nonprofit partners: Brooklyn Level Up and Wyckoff House & Association

Studies found that soil in East Flatbush has the 3rd highest level of lead contamination in NYC, potentially jeopardizing the health of homeowners and community gardeners growing and sharing produce; while asthma-related hospitalization rates in East Flatbush are higher compared to Brooklyn and NYC overall. Cultivate Green will conduct soil testing, air monitoring and remediation, host community workshops to raise awareness of health risks, sustainability, and preliminary remediation tactics.

Kensington Cultural Council

Neighborhood: Kensington
Nonprofit partners: Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts NY, Inc., The Singing Winds, Casa Cultural, Bangladesh Institute of Performing Arts, Arts & Democracy and ArtBuilt

The Kensington Cultural Council will coordinate a series of multilingual public cultural events including family arts workshops, sewing circles, dance and ESL classes, storytelling, concerts, and forums reflecting the traditional cultures of immigrant families. To address a lack of community space, the group will carry out a planning process for a neighborhood cultural hub that includes office and studio space for local artists and cultural organizations; a large conference room for public workshops, meetings and forums; and storage for shared equipment.

Brooklyn Org Awards $75,000 to Support Neighborhood-Focused Projects