Brooklyn In This Moment: A Briefing By Brooklyn Community Foundation

HOUSEKEEPING PLEASE NOTE: • This meeting is being recorded • Please enter questions in the Q&A box throughout the webinar, to be answered at the end • Closed Captions are provided

Lori Luis CEO & President LoriLu Consulting Dr.

Rainey President & CEO Brooklyn Community Foundation

AGENDA • About Us • Listening Tour Overview • Neighborhood Insights • Top Focus Areas across Brooklyn • Key Takeaways • Next Steps • Q&A

We partner with generous donors and community leaders to invest in racial justice and community-led change, distributing over $75M for nonprofits since 2009, including over $25M since 2020 OUR APPROACH: • Racial Justice • Community Engagement • Participatory Grantmaking • Invest in Advocacy • Brooklyn Donor Advised Fund ABOUT BROOKLYN COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

HISTORY: • Brooklyn Insights 2014 INFORMING GRANTMAKING STRATEGY: • Elders Insights (Brooklyn Elders Fund) • Brooklyn Insights 2020 • Wellness and Recovery Fund NEW IN 2022 - LISTENING TOURS: • Annual Neighborhood-Based Conversations with Foundation CEO • Keep Us Better Informed and Engaged in Neighborhoods across Brooklyn • Build Relationships with Emerging Nonprofits & Grassroots Leaders • Identify Urgent Needs and Potential Funding/Support Strategies OUR COMMITMENT TO COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

2022 LISTENING TOUR LOCATIONS • Bay Ridge • Bedford-Stuyvesant • Brownsville • Bushwick • Canarsie • Coney Island • Crown Heights • East New York / Cypress Hills • Flatbush / East Flatbush • Sunset Park

Community Stakeholder 8% Economic Development 5% Education 5% Faith-Based 8% Nonprofit 65% NYCHA 4% Small Business 5% • 171 Total Participants at 10 Meetings • Nonprofit, Community, Religious, And Small Business Leaders • Small Meetings to Maximize Participation • 12-26 Participants Per Meeting 2022 LISTENING TOUR PARTICIPANTS

WHAT IS ONE WORD THAT DESCRIBES YOUR COMMUNITY?

• What is happening in your neighborhood? • What are some of the challenges you face? • What resources are needed in your community? • What opportunities are available? • Who is doing the work now? 2022 LISTENING TOUR QUESTIONS

Bay Ridge BedStuy Brownsville Bushwick Canarsie Coney Island Crown Heights East NY / Cypress Hills Flatbush / E. Flatbush Sunset Park Capacity Building 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Communication 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Crime & Violence 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Education 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Food Insecurity 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Nonprofit Funding 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Gentrification 1 1 1 1 Housing 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Immigration 1 1 1 1 1 1 Infrastructure 1 1 1 1 1 1 Mental Health 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Older Adults 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Community Programming 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Small Business 1 1 1 1 1 1 Space 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Workforce Dev. / Jobs 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Youth Programming 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 FOCUS AREAS BY NEIGHBORHOOD

BAY RIDGE INSIGHTS: • Neighborhood is diversifying • Large older adult population impacted by pandemic • Food insecurity is high • Smoke Shops & impact on children and youth • Asylum-seekers coming in and need food, housing, and other services • Capital funding needed for a building to support programs and services “Unless there is a drastic change in Bay Ridge, there will never be a shelter or a charter school, due to stereotypes around these types of facilities.”

BEDFORD-STUYVESANT

BEDFORD-STUYVESANT INSIGHTS: • Food insecurity is high - pantries need food and resources • Youth feeding into the prison system – need training, programs and jobs • Develop and promote local creative and technical talent • Nonprofits need assistance with grant writing and capacity building • Businesses opening in vacant commercial corridors need help • Collaboration needed amongst nonprofits and businesses “The brain don’t work if you don’t eat!”

BROWNSVILLE INSIGHTS: • Lack of communication about available services and resources • Spaces needed for programming (ADA-accessible) • Affordable housing with mixed-use spaces are desired • Entrepreneurship and small businesses struggle • Need workforce development, adult literacy, and trade programs “These young men have hands like gold, but nobody told them.” “Never Ran Never Will”

BUSHWICK INSIGHTS: • Gentrification and influx of immigrants • Translation services needed for Latinx and Asian residents • Investment needed in schools - climate, programs, and resources • Safety and infrastructure impact on older adults • Street homelessness and substance use • Mental health issues especially with young adults “Many people do not have access to wi-fi, and they use their phones as hot spots, so I let them come into my business to use wi-fi.”

CANARSIE INSIGHTS: • Gun violence, gangs, and lack of youth programs • Lack of info about community events, programs, news • Space for programs and events, especially arts and culture • Workforce development, training, and jobs for young adults • Small businesses suffering due to fewer customers “People are doing this on their own, without institutional and government support - they come together. No one funds me, I run it out of my pocket."

CONEY ISLAND INSIGHTS: • Infrastructure, construction, and congestion • Fast-food restaurants and lack of healthy eating options • Largest population of older adults in Brooklyn • Small nonprofits need capacity support to increase programs • Needs for greater communication & collaboration • Need for space for meetings, event, and programs • Need for day-to-day retail businesses (grocery, clothing stores) “Our young people are in survival mode because they are dealing with trauma. If the parents are in trauma, so are their children.”

CROWN HEIGHTS INSIGHTS: • Improve communications to let everyone know what is going on • Culture vs Gentrification, respect long-standing residents • Mental and emotional health issues • Small nonprofits need capacity building to access funding • Creating accessibility and affordability at Crown Heights Armory • Need for youth programs “Many of us are owed government funding, which was already awarded. And we need to understand how the funding is allocated.”

EAST NEW YORK / CYPRESS HILLS INSIGHTS: • Commercial development is straining infrastructure • Lack of affordable housing – young people leaving the neighborhood • Limited support and resources for entrepreneurs • Education is a top priority – overcrowding in schools • Space needed for programs, arts and culture • Lack of communication and coordination • Intergenerational programming – connect youth with local seniors • Need for workforce development, training, and trade schools “Many of our young people are leaving and going to places like Atlanta where they have incubators for startup businesses and other support.”

FLATBUSH / EAST FLATBUSH INSIGHTS: • Gentrification has changed the neighborhood – seniors displaced • Landlord neglect forcing people out • Young adults with mental health issues – in need of services • Funding needed for programming for all ages • Sanitation – trash and rodents • Communications are sparse – need to build out shared platforms “The aesthetics of Flatbush have changed. Where there were Mom and Pop stores, we now have nothing but Smoke Shops and fast-food stores.”

SUNSET PARK INSIGHTS: • Influx of asylum-seekers requiring services • Lack of translation services at city agencies for Latinx and Asian residents • Senior centers - decreased attendance due to anti-Asian hate crimes • Rising rents and lack of affordable food sources – pantries closing • Need for workforce development, training, and jobs • Nonprofits struggling for funds for general operating expenses • EBT Card theft/fraud – language barrier when reporting “With the onset of climate change and extreme weather conditions new jobs are coming into Sunset Park focused on wind as a source of energy – but those jobs are not going to people in this community.”

• Food Insecurity • Capacity Building for Small Nonprofits • Community Programming • Community Space • Communication & Coordination • Youth • Older Adults • Immigrants TOP OVERALL FOCUS AREAS

FOOD INSECURITY OPPORTUNITIES: • Identify opportunities to partner on food distributions and reduce duplication of services • Funding for pantries to purchase food from direct suppliers • Central neighborhood location for reporting of EBT Card fraud in native languages

CAPACITY BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES: • Provide subject matter experts to work with nonprofits on capacity building • Aid with applying for grants, RFPs, and sponsorships • Smaller nonprofits partner with larger organizations to share resources

COMMUNITY PROGRAMMING OPPORTUNITIES: • Capacity building will help nonprofits with planning to develop programs • Smaller nonprofits to work with larger nonprofits who have administrative skills • Nonprofits require access to city agencies and subject matter experts • Individual assistance to those seeking capital funds for space renovation

COMMUNITY SPACE OPPORTUNITIES: • Identify available spaces, sizes, pricing, and technology • Funding to supplement nonprofits in need of space • Small businesses to share wi-fi with the community • Support nonprofit programming partnerships with space providers • Local developers provide community spaces in new construction • Larger nonprofits provide space for smaller nonprofits • Nonprofits become DOE vendors to offer programs in school spaces

COMMUNICATION & COORDINATION OPPORTUNITIES: • Create communication plans by neighborhood • Develop community websites and social media • Partner with groups already funded to provide translation services • Engage youth to distribute hard-copy communications • Identify central locations for hard-copy and electronic communications • Intermediaries connect nonprofits with city services & other resources

YOUTH OPPORTUNITIES: • Tailored messaging and outreach to engage youth in programs • Identify counseling resources for young people in trauma • Opportunities for youth to organize and lead on neighborhood issues • Nonprofits partner with NYC DYCD on programs and resources • Connect youth to nonprofit training and workforce programs

OLDER ADULTS OPPORTUNITIES: • Get funding to local areas to provide programming and resources • Intergenerational programming • Technology support and training • Invest in street infrastructure, sidewalk repair, and lighting • Target communications to older adults about available resources

OPPORTUNITIES: • Funding for neighborhood-based services • Identify translation services to work with immigrants in local neighborhoods • Partner with the city immigration agencies to identify resources needed

KEY TAKEAWAYS • Nonprofits are filling the void in resources and services • Food insecurity and nonprofit capacity building are major issues in all communities • Communications require collaboration across groups and cultures • Translation services are needed – especially with influx of immigrants • Space for programming and services is required for all ages • Access to city funding is complex and payment is not timely • Infrastructure and congestion causing sanitation and health issues • Limited technology and wi-fi access prevents growth • Homelessness and mental health issues rising among youth • Extended day care and after school programs are needed

OUR NEXT STEPS • Identifying New Funding Strategies to Respond to What We Learned • Incorporating Findings into New Strategic Plan • Supporting Small Nonprofits through Capacity Building and Connecting to City Agencies and Other Resources • Telling These Stories, Connecting Groups to Other Funders • Promoting Collaboration Among Neighborhood Nonprofits • Sharing Funding Opportunities through Our Newsletters • Continuing the Conversation – 2023 Listening Tour!

THANK YOU TO OUR LISTENING TOUR HOSTS: Bay Ridge Blend: Coffee + CoWork Bedford-Stuyvesant Therapy Wine Bar Brownsville Brownsville Culinary Center and Brooklyn Blend Bushwick Stars Café Canarsie BK Lifestyle Athletic Club - Lounge / Café Coney Island IHOP Crown Heights The Crown Heights Café East NY / Cypress Hills Fusion East Flatbush / East Flatbush Lips Café Sunset Park Park Asia Restaurant

Q&A