Be Loud Studios
Be Loud Studios amplifies youth confidence through radio production in New Orleans. They help kids turn screens into tools for self-expression and courageous collaboration. Be Loud was founded in 2019 by two teachers whose students were disengaged from traditional academic work and needed an avenue for authentic expression. They created a radio station so youth could creatively write, interview, and produce radio shows, building trust through creative work and community connections. Be Loud centers Black youth, inviting teens to tell their stories and use radio to express themselves. In the last seven years, what started as a classroom project has grown into a citywide movement for youth voice and leadership. We have recorded with over 5,000 youth, coached more than 50 teachers in 25 public schools, and built nearly 100 partnerships.
Project Overview: This collaboration will strengthen intergenerational trust in New Orleans through Between Us Radio, an initiative that brings Black youth and older adults together through interviews, town halls, and shared meals focused on local issues and community storytelling. Through youth-led conversations and public radio programming, Between Us Radio will amplify youth voices, foster meaningful relationships across generations, and build lasting networks for civic dialogue, reflection, and collaboration.
Partner Organizations
WWNO (New Orleans) and WRKF (Baton Rouge)
are trusted public media institutions that broadcast locally rooted stories to regional audiences. Through radio and digital distribution, these partners expand the reach of youth-produced work and invite listeners to engage with perspectives they may not often hear.
CoGenerate provides national leadership in
intergenerational practice, advising on collaboration design, shared power, and trust-building across age groups to solve big problems, bridge divides, and co-create the future.
The New Orleans Youth Alliance (NOYA)
is a healing-centered youth development intermediary for the Greater New Orleans area. NOYA works to cultivate a system of high-quality, well-resourced youth development organizations that center youth leadership, racial equity and intersectional equity in their work with young people.
Whole Village Art Therapy is a non-profit organization that provides high quality, community based art therapy services to improve access and reduce systemic barriers to mental health services in New Orleans.
Local arts and culture organizations ground
the collaboration in New Orleans. Ubuntu Village engages older adults and longtime community activists as dialogue partners and mentors. Preservation Hall Foundation connects youth with historic musicians and culture bearers through storytelling. These partnerships remain flexible,
allowing additional community-based partners to join.
Impact Community Development Corporation (DBA Care Center of New Jersey)
The CARE Center of New Jersey (CCNJ) is a trusted, community-based organization with 20+ years of experience advancing dignity, access, and opportunity across Northern NJ. We provide holistic supports designed in direct response to community-identified needs including, food access, nutrition/health education and financial literacy. Our flagship Food for Hope program reaches more than 12,000 residents annually across 12 counties, distributing over 250,000 pounds of fresh food through mobile pantries at neighborhood hubs and a 10,000-square-foot no cost community food store.
Project Overview: This collaboration will transform a one-acre site in Morris County, New Jersey into a Community Garden and Empowerment Hub that strengthens trust across residents, cultures, and sectors through shared stewardship, learning, and dialogue. Led by CARE Center of New Jersey, the initiative will combine urban agriculture education, community conversations, and volunteer engagement to foster cross-cultural relationships, civic participation, and a stronger sense of belonging and collaboration.
Partner Organizations
Christ Church is a multicultural congregation of more than 10,000 members across three campuses in Morris, Essex, and Passaic counties, representing over 70 nationalities. With deep community roots, Christ Church is actively engaged in initiatives that promote service, inclusion, and community wellbeing. The church has partnered with CCNJ on efforts such as the annual Thanksgiving Food Drive, mobilizing volunteers and resources to meet local needs.
Gathering Ground is a New Jersey–based organization specializing in group facilitation and community dialogue. Their mission is to foster community cohesion and collaborative action by bringing together people from diverse backgrounds for meaningful dialogue around shared challenges.
Morris County Organization for Hispanic Affairs (MCOHA) is a long-standing, trusted organization serving immigrant and low-income residents across Morris County and surrounding communities. MCOHA has supported more than 12,000 individuals through bilingual outreach, leadership development, advocacy, and wraparound services. Its deep community relationships and cultural competence will ensure inclusive outreach and meaningful participation from immigrant and Hispanic residents.
Legal Prep Charter Academy
Legal Prep Charter Academy is a 40-person organization whose mission is to use a law-themed curriculum and a culture of high expectations to develop compassion, self-motivation, and reflection in young people from traditionally underserved communities, preparing them to succeed at top four-year colleges and universities. Its vision is to combine a rigorous college-preparatory education with award-winning legal programming that builds written and oral communication, critical thinking, problem solving, and advocacy skills—tools students use to lead in their communities and careers.
Legal Prep serves predominantly Black and Latinx students on Chicago’s West Side, many of whom are first-generation college-bound students. The school has achieved strong outcomes, including an approximately 85% graduation rate, significant SAT growth, a 93% college acceptance rate, and a suspension rate under 2%, reflecting a supportive, non-exclusionary culture grounded in restorative practices.
Legal Prep’s dedicated team of educators and operational staff partner closely with law firms, corporations, volunteers and community organizations. This collaborative model reflects deep experience in trust-building initiatives that foster belonging, student voice, and strong school-community relationships.
Project Overview: This collaboration will expand Legal Prep Charter Academies’ Peace Warriors program to strengthen trust among youth, adults, and institutions in Chicago’s West Side communities through youth-led nonviolence and community healing initiatives. In partnership with local organizations, students will receive training in Kingian Nonviolence, lead intergenerational trust circles, and organize community projects that foster dialogue, shared responsibility, and stronger relationships across generations and institutions.
Partner Organizations
Institute for Nonviolence Chicago (INVC) is a community-based violence prevention and intervention organization working to build the “Beloved Community”. INVC is grounded in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s principles of nonviolence. INVC supports individuals and communities most impacted by gun violence through street outreach, conflict mediation, victim advocacy, behavioral health services, reentry support, and nonviolence training, and has worked with Legal Prep and its families.
Off The Street Club (OTSC) is Chicago’s oldest inner-city youth organization and a longstanding anchor in West Garfield Park. OTSC provides a safe, supportive environment for young people, offering academic support, recreation, mentorship, and enrichment opportunities. Its mission is to provide hope and opportunity to youth in communities facing concentrated poverty and violence.
Moving Everest Charter School is a K–8 public charter school in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood. Its mission is to transform students’ lives by sharpening their minds, developing their character, and expanding their vision for the future. As a key feeder school to Legal Prep, it strengthens this collaboration by creating a continuous, aligned pipeline for leadership development and trust-building from middle through high school.
Miles Heights Development Corporation
Miles Heights Development Corporation (MHDC) serves as the Lead Organization in a collaborative of five locally based nonprofits working to advance innovative, community-rooted approaches to building trust across Ward 1 of Cleveland Ohio’s Southeast Side. MHDC is a 501(c)(3) community development corporation whose mission is to stabilize, restore, and revitalize the historic Lee-Seville neighborhood of Cleveland through equitable development, historic preservation, and resident-driven programming that strengthens community voice and self-determination.
MHDC’s primary areas of work include neighborhood revitalization, housing stabilization, historic preservation, heritage interpretation, public-realm improvements, green space activation, and inclusive community programming that centers long-time residents, families, and marginalized voices.
Project Overview: This collaboration will launch the Lee-Seville Trust Commons, a community-led initiative designed to rebuild trust in Cleveland’s Lee-Seville neighborhood through shared decision-making, transparent collaboration, and visible neighborhood improvements. Through facilitated Trust Circles, resident-led planning, and rapid implementation of community-selected projects such as beautification, public art, and accessibility upgrades, residents and local partners will strengthen relationships, increase civic participation, and demonstrate that community voices can drive meaningful change.
Partner Organizations
Friends of The Village of Miles Heights Inc. (Est. 2022) – Collaborates with residents, other organizations, businesses, and government agencies to amplify the community’s voice and advocate for shared goals.
Lee-Seville-Miles Citizens Council (Est. 1958) – Engages residents through meetings, workshops, and grassroots organizing to build support for advocacy efforts and raise public awareness about critical issues.
Special Deeds Inc. (Est. 2017) – Facilitates empathetic cultures of mutual respect to ensure every person feels understood, accepted, and has a stake in the community’s future.
SYATT Cleveland (Est. 2009) – Bridges residents and organizations in social-ecological pursuits to enhance our natural system’s ability to absorb effects of change and adapt to urban encroachment.
New Neighbors Partnership
New Neighbors Partnership (NNP) is a New York City–based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2020 to welcome newly-arrived refugee and asylum-seeking families by helping them forge meaningful social connections with local families who can provide emotional, informational, and concrete support during resettlement. NNP fills the community gap that so many newcomers experience by providing the long-term, relationship-based support that families need to truly rebuild their lives.
New Neighbors’ core program is a clothing partnership that creates ongoing relationships between local New Yorker families who can regularly pass along their kids clothes and newcomer families with younger kids who receive hand-me-downs through a dignified family-to-family sharing model. These relationships mirror the informal community support many families rely on—borrowing clothes, learning about neighborhood resources, or having someone to call in a moment of need—but which most newcomers lack upon arrival.
Unlike traditional refugee support models (most refugees receive only 90 days of formal assistance from resettlement agencies), NNP remains connected to families for years, building trust through consistency, reliability, and mutual care.
Project Overview: This collaboration will host Community Welcome Dinners across Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens to strengthen trust and belonging between newly arrived refugee families and longtime New Yorkers through shared meals, storytelling, and cultural exchange. By creating welcoming, family-friendly spaces where newcomers serve as hosts and cultural leaders, the initiative will foster cross-cultural understanding, reduce social isolation, and build lasting relationships rooted in mutual care and community connection.
Partner Organizations
The Service Collective (TSC) is a Brooklyn-based nonprofit that connects families with meaningful volunteer opportunities and supports partner organizations through volunteer engagement. For this project, TSC provides community space, volunteer coordination, and logistical support for each community welcome dinner. Its strong relationships with local families are central to convening neighbors who may not otherwise have opportunities to connect with newcomer communities.
New Women New Yorkers (NWNY) is a nonprofit organization that empowers women through employment readiness, public speaking, and storytelling trainings to empower newcomers. NWNY will support refugee participants in shaping and sharing their stories in ways that feel safe, empowering, and culturally responsive, and will advise on structured dialogue prompts and creative activities that deepen empathy, reflection, and trust among participants.
