LA Commons

In the Florence Graham neighborhood, LA Commons will leverage the power of art and culture to create a model oasis of belonging at Fremont High School, empowering students and their fellow community residents to take charge in advocating for their top health priorities. Community driven workshops, from Indigenous cooking to gardening, printmaking to flamenco dance promote connection and well-being by increasing access to culturally relevant healthy lifestyle choices.

In the Florence Graham neighborhood, LA Commons will leverage the power of art and culture to create an oasis of belonging at Fremont Healthy Culture hub, empowering students at Fremont High School and their fellow community residents to take charge in advocating for one of their top health priorities - community safety.

The historic heart of Black LA, Crenshaw is ground zero for the pandemic’s inequitable impact based on systemic disinvestment, marginalization and now, accelerating displacement. Crenshaw Stories Power the Vote recognizes the 2022 election as a critical opportunity to create common purpose and demand action through a grassroots narrative change process led by local artists and youth. Vibrant art activations amplify our stories, build connection and inspire voter turnout for election results that drive the change we envision in our neighborhood.

Leveraging the power of food and culture, we will entice millennials to engage in planning affordable housing in LA and activate them to run in the 2019 and 2021 Neighborhood Council elections.

Found LA: Festival of Neighborhoods, October 13, 2013, is a day-long celebration of the people and places of Los Angeles providing FREE opportunities for people to explore little known parts of the city with locals as their guides. Organized and implemented through the work of volunteers from many of the areas to be explored, the project provides rich and varied options for people to interact across the divides that make it difficult for Angelenos to develop trust. In addition to discovering attractions in each of the 40 neighborhoods on offer, an essential component of each experience is sharing a locally prepared meal. Food is the great connector, providing a visceral way to get to know previously unknown neighbors based on the sharing of comfort through a well-prepared meal. Eating together is an invitation to socialize and build relationships as barriers to interaction lower with each delicious bite eaten. Seated in a restaurant, a backyard, a community garden or a church banquet hall, people from very different parts of Los Angeles come together and recognize their connection with others and feel more a part of the city. Harvard scholar, Robert Putnam, writes on the value of “social capital,” or the benefits that derive from the cooperation between individuals and groups including a lessening of social isolation. From “Better Together,” “The arts can nurture social capital by strengthening friendships, helping communities to understand and celebrate their heritage, and providing a safe way to discuss and solve difficult social problems. The arts provide a powerful way to transcend the cultural and demographic boundaries that divide us and to find deeper spiritual connections with those like us.” Found LA 2013 will be the third year of the festival. In 2011, 15 tours were held in neighborhoods across Los Angeles, from West Hollywood to San Pedro, from Santa Monica to Highland Park. Tour guides ranged from LA City Councilmember Eric Garcetti (Atwater Village) to food blogger Namju Cho (Koreatown) to youth organizers from Chuco’s Justice Center (Inglewood/South LA). In Leimert Park, artist Karen Collins shared her African American Museum of Miniatures. The surprising Museum is comprised of shadow boxes created with found objects depicting scenes from the history of the African American community—from the royalty of Egypt to Martin Luther King and Mohammed Ali. The following year, 2012, the festival included 14 tours, and participation increased by 23%. Our goal for 2013 is to host 50 tours.