Nonprofit Takes Advantage of Clubhouse to Activate Community Leaders in NYC During COVID Recovery
Citizens Committee for New York City wants New Yorkers to start neighborhood projects by offering $1M in grants
NEW YORK – Citizens Committee for New York City (CitizensNYC,) one of the nation’s oldest micro-funding organizations, has a longstanding history of celebrating and supporting civic leaders. Now, the organization is organizing community leaders on Clubhouse, an audio-chat social media app that emerged during the pandemic.
CitizenNYC is one of the first nonprofits to capitalize on the design of the new app, by recruiting it’s grantee network of more than 15,000 New Yorkers to come together and start connecting with one another online. Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Rahsaan Harris, kicked-off the organization’s annual fundraising campaign The New Yorkers for New York in March by hosting a 24-hour room on the app. The New Yorkers for New York virtual campaign is innovative by design, and aims to raise money through immersive storytelling rather than a traditional in-person gala. The organization is also utilizing Clubhouse to raise awareness about the $1M in funds that is currently available to New Yorkers through it’s All in Neighborhood Grant and Neighborhood Business Grant programs – which provides micro-grants of up to $10,000 for neighborhood improvement projects.
Clubhouse functions like a live interactive podcast, and is currently only available on the iPhone. It is also invitation-only, but once accepted, users can network and engage with some of the top decision makers and influencers in the world due to the intimacy of the app’s design, although developers have plans for expansion.
Dr. Harris wants to use the app as an innovative tool to better connect community organizers, politicians, philanthropists, corporate executives, and everyday New Yorkers – and also to support the organization’s ongoing grantmaking and fundraising efforts.
“I believe clubhouse is a powerful tool that can be a game changer for sharing social capital. We launched 24-hours on Clubhouse to bring awareness to the work CitizensNYC is doing for New York City. I believe we were the first New York-based nonprofit to do so,” said Dr. Harris. “We hope that our network utilizes the power of the app to get connected with one another for positive change in New York City, especially as we rebuild and think about life beyond the pandemic.”
Participants include philanthropists such as Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist, journalist Gayle King, academic Henry “Skip” Louis Gates, Jr. and celebrities like Naomi Campbell. Award-winning philanthropy advisor Kris Putnam-Walkerly hosts weekly clubhouse rooms about fundraising and giving. Kris was one of the first leaders in philanthropy to utilize twitter for business, on behalf of the nonprofit industry.
“Most philanthropy leaders have not yet heard of Clubhouse, but they should pay attention,” said Putnam-Walkerly. “Just like Twitter in 2009, Clubhouse today offers unprecedented potential for funders, nonprofit leaders, community activists, entrepreneurs, and influencers to engage in authentic, real-time conversations. The potential of Clubhouse for grantmaking, fund development, learning, listening, collaborating, and igniting change is limited only by our imaginations. CitizensNYC is smart to be an early adopter and innovative leader on this disruptive new social media platform.”
Similar to the old fundraising strategy of a traditional telethon, Citizens Committee now hosts a weekly room on the app every Thursday at 4:30pm ET. To stay in the loop join the “Get It, NYC!” club at https://www.joinclubhouse.com/club/get-it-nyc
To learn more or donate to the New Yorker for New York campaign, check out the latest HERE.
About Citizens Committee for New York City:
Citizens Committee for New York City’s mission is to help New Yorkers - especially those in low-income areas - come together and improve the quality of life in their neighborhoods. Residents are uniquely situated to define and act on the issues affecting their communities. When provided with modest support, neighborhood and school groups can effectively mobilize with the assistance of grants, skills-building workshops, project planning assistance and an equipment share library. In 2020, CitizensNYC provided 402 projects with nearly $1.2M in direct cash grants, impacting more than 87,685 residents in 122 neighborhoods across all five boroughs. Since 1975, we have promoted the spirit of volunteerism, local engagement, and social justice that drives our work. Go to citizensnyc.org to learn more.
Additional Information:
Webpage: https://www.citizensnyc.org
Social Media: Twitter @citizensnyc | Instagram @citizenscommittee | Facebook.com/citizensnyc