We're giving grants of $5,000 to host a conversation about LA's future!

Register now for our February 17th webinar.

LA2050 is a community-guided initiative driving and tracking progress toward a shared vision for the future of Los Angeles centered around five goals – to make LA the best place to LIVE, LEARN, PLAY, CREATE, and CONNECT.

We launched our first LA2050 Grants Challenge in 2013 to inspire action and move the needle on the five goals. Through eight cycles of the grants challenge, we've granted more than $8 million to 110+ organizations shaping a brighter future for Los Angeles with the help of hundreds of thousands of Angelenos voting for their favorite proposals.

For the 2022 LA2050 Grants Challenge, we're implementing something new… and we need your help to engage Los Angeles!

We're looking for 10 organizations to facilitate LA2050 Listens conversations about the challenges and opportunities facing our region and motivate participants to vote for the issues that matter most to them through the LA2050 Grants Challenge.

In return, LA2050 will dedicate $1 million in grant funding to local organizations that are making an impact on the top-voted issues.

Selected LA2050 Listens hosts will be awarded a $5,000 grant and commit to:

• Program one or more engaging events during the voting period from April 18th to May 6th, 2022 (either virtual or in-person with COVID precautions)
• Reach 500 or more voters (at least 50 through direct attendance, with the rest through indirect contacts such as social media or email)
• Help LA2050 spread the word about voting, applications, and more throughout the LA2050 Grants Challenge as an official Outreach Partner
• Share about their events on social media
• Complete a brief report on the outcomes of the events including a 250-word narrative, due May 20th, 2022
• Further details can be found in the FAQs below.

If your organization is interested in hosting an event for LA2050 Listens, apply using this Google Form. The Google Form will not save your progress, so we recommend downloading a reference copy of the grant application, preparing your answers in a separate document, and then returning to the Google Form to input them and submit.

Applications are due March 10th, 2022 at 5:00 pm. You will be notified of the status of your grant application on or before March 16th, 2022.

If you have questions, please register for our informational webinar on February 17th, 2022 at 11:00 am or email connect@la2050.org.

APPLY HERE

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is LA2050?

LA2050 is a community-guided initiative driving and tracking progress toward a shared vision for the future of Los Angeles centered around five goals – to make Los Angeles the best place to create, connect, live, learn, and play by the year 2050.

What is LA2050 Listens?

In 2014 and 2015, LA2050 launched its first two rounds of LA2050 Listens – a series of events led by local organizations to solicit feedback on the original draft of the LA2050 goals and metrics from a broad group of Angelenos.

Now, in advance of the 2022 LA2050 Grants Challenge, we're relaunching LA2050 Listens to engage Angelenos in discussing the future of our region and sharing the issues that matter most to them. Through LA2050 Listens, participants will cast their votes in this year's grants challenge and, in doing so, set our grantmaking priorities for this year. LA2050 will dedicate $1 million in grant funding to the top-voted issues.

What is the LA2050 Grants Challenge?

The LA2050 Grants Challenge awards a total of $1 million in grants to local social impact organizations that are working toward a brighter future for Los Angeles.

Since 2013, more than 1,800 creative and innovative proposals have been submitted to the grants challenge. With the guidance of hundreds of thousands of voters, LA2050 has granted more than $8 million to more than 110 impactful organizations.

This year, we are asking Angelenos to share which five local issues matter most to them, one in each of the five goal categories. LA2050 will dedicate $1 million in grant funding to the top-voted issues, giving grants to the local organizations making meaningful progress in those areas.

What is provided to LA2050 Listens recipients?

LA2050 Listens hosts will receive a $5,000 grant from the Goldhirsh Foundation in return for their participation. To prepare for the events, the grant recipients will be invited to an informational webinar and given promotional materials.

What is expected of LA2050 Listens recipients?

LA2050 Listens hosts will program one or more engaging events during the LA2050 Grants Challenge voting period from April 18 to May 6, 2022. The events can be either virtual or in-person with COVID-19 precautions. They must be engaging and participatory. Beyond that, the structure of the event is up to each organization! The more creative, the better.

Through LA2050 Listens, we expect hosts to reach 500 or more voters. At least 50 of these voters must be engaged through direct attendance at the event. The rest can be indirect contacts made through other tactics including social media, e-newsletters, text messages, etc. We ask that hosts share about their events on social media and complete a brief report on the outcomes of the events including a 250-word narrative, to be due May 20, 2022.

In addition, we will enlist LA2050 Listens hosts as official Outreach Partners, helping us to spread the word about voting, applications, and more to their networks.

How are LA2050 Listens recipients selected?

LA2050 Listens hosts will be selected according to the proposed structure of their events (bonus points for creativity!), their outreach and engagement tactics, and the size and diversity of their audience in race/ethnicity, age, neighborhood, language, and more.