Helping entrepreneurs build businesses that bring positive change to their neighborhoods.
Get the Guidance, Support, and Capital you need to grow a business that empowers your community
Sponsored by the NYC Office of Neighborhood Safety (ONS).
Have a business idea that brings positive change
to your neighborhood?
If you have an innovative business idea that helps to create safer, healthier, and more prosperous neighborhoods in NYC, we want to help you bring your vision to life.
Designed for entrepreneurs who are passionate about improving their local communities, the Renaissance Project offers business training, mentorship, $4,000 in funding, and an opportunity to pitch your business ideas for a chance to win up to $10,000 in additional funding at our Pitch Competition.
There is no one better than you to build a business that strengthens & improves where you live.
Ready to start a renaissance in your neighborhood?
HEALTH + WELLBEING
Mental Wellness
Food Security
Public Health
YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
Youth Programming + Engagement
PreK – 12 Education
Building and Campus Safety
Clean + Sanitary Conditions
Recreation + Play
PHYSICAL SPACE
ECONOMIC STABILITY
Education + Training Access
Career Growth + Sustainability
Entrepreneurship Opportunities
SAFETY + JUSTICE
Crime + Gun Violence
Social Issues
Community + Police Relations
Get the skills and funds you need to grow your business.
Receive up to $4,000 in funding to hit the ground running
Explore new ways to improve your neighborhood by starting or growing a for-profit business or non-profit.
Discover impactful and profitable opportunities in your neighborhood and gain the skills and knowledge needed to take action on them.
Get personalized, step-by-step guidance from mentors to explore, test and build out your ideas.
Learn how to start, operate and grow a sustainable business from a network of mission driven business owners, experts, and industry professionals.
Have a chance to win up to $10,000 in grand prizes at our Pitch Competition.
Past Participants
Based in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, SG Next Level Tennis creates equity in tennis for girls of color by offering high-quality, affordable tennis programs and consulting services.
Dedicated to preventing violence and aiding victims in vulnerable communities, they uniquely engage both victims and perpetrators of violent crimes, addressing root causes for more effective solutions.
African Royalty character company depicting the stories of non-fictional African Kings and Queens.
How it Works
1. Submit Your Application
By March 31, 2024 tell us all about you, your business idea and/or existing business and how it adds to the well-being of your neighborhood.2. Get
Selected
A selection committee will choose the most promising businesses to interview. Interviewees will be accepted into the program based on the quality of the business idea, fit for the program, motivation, and level of commitment to community wellbeing.3. Join
the Program
Work with mentors and instructors who will help you develop everything from the basic concepts of your business to plans for step-by-step execution. Receive up to $4,000 in startup funds to help grow your business. 4. Pitch
Your Idea
Having completed The Renaissance Project, you’ll be immediately eligible to enter a Pitch competition. Stand before a panel of judges, pitch your idea, and win up to $10,000 in additional capital.The Renaissance project is looking for mission-driven entrepreneurs, and leaders, who are residents of NYCHA/ONS and starting or growing businesses in these areas:
Youth Development
Health and Wellness
Physical Spaces
Economic Stability
Safety + Justice
You must:
Have a business idea that addresses one of the ONS priority areas listed above.
Live in a NYCHA/ONS site
Are 18+ years of age
Have availability and commitment to the 10 week process
Have access to technology and tech skills (i.e. zoom, google calendar, Microsoft)
Who Should Apply?
Frequently Asked Questions
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BRONX
1. Castle Hill 2. Butler 3. Mitchel 4. Morris 5. Mott Haven 6. Patterson
BROOKLYN
7. Boulevard 8. Brownsville 9. Bushwick, 10. Gowanus 11. Ingersoll 12. Langston Hughes 13. Linden 14. Marcy 15. Red Hook 16. Summer 17. Tilden 18. Tompkins 19. Van Dyke 20.Whitman, 21. Wyckoff
MANHATTAN
22. Jefferson 23. Johnson 24. Polo Grounds 25. Saint Nicholas 26.Wagner
QUEENS
27. Beach 41st St 28. Queensbridge
STATEN ISLAND
29. Stapleton 30. West Brighton
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Live in NYCHA housing or have a business address in NYC MAP site areas.
Be 18+ years of age
Have a business or a non profit idea that uplift your neighborhood
Availability and commitment to the 10-week process
Access to technology and tech skills (i.e. zoom, google calendar, Microsoft)
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Building and Campus Safety
Clean + Sanitary Conditions
Recreation + Play
Education + Training Access
Career Growth + Sustainability
Entrepreneurship Opportunities
Mental Wellness
Emergency Preparedness
Food Security
Public Health
Crime + Gun Violence
Social Issues
Community + Police Relations
Youth Programming + Engagement
PreK – 12 Education
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$4,000 in funding to start or grow your business
Skill-development and prototyping workshops and seminars
Mentorship and other pro-bono services
Peer-to-peer accountability partnerships
Group and one-on-one ideation sessions
A business model canvas and action plan
Chance to win up to $10,000 in grand prizes at our Pitch Competition
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The curriculum and calendar will be finalized based on applications received. This means we’ll focus on topics each cohort needs or wants to discuss. Each topic will always have a multi-stakeholder approach since we focus on training entrepreneurs who seek to run conscious, community-safety businesses and non profits. General topics we will cover include the following:
Neighborhood development
Business and Issue Foundations
Business legal considerations
Designing Thinking
Market Validation
Business Operations and Cost
Branding and Marketing
Financial Management and Funding
Pitching
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We encourage startups in the ideation stage and registered businesses to apply. Applicants who have yet to start their business but demonstrate strong business ideas and commitment to uplift their neighborhood through business will be invited to be interviewed and a determination will be made shortly after.
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Yes, expect 1-2 hours of homework each week. Participants will be required to complete assignments before each live session. Live sessions will focus on active discussion and workshops to apply concepts to participants’ businesses.
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The Renaissance Project is FREE for all participants accepted into the program. The program is funded by the NYC Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Safety.
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NYCHA residents will be given priority consideration, but other applicants will be considered if space allows.
Our Partners
Progress Playbook is a business training and service platform that designs customized experiences to help entrepreneurs start and grow businesses. Together with the NYC Office of Neighborhood Safety, they’ve launched two programs for entrepreneurs living across the 30 MAP developments, The Renaissance Project and The Blueprint Project.
The Office of Neighborhood Safety (ONS) combines the efforts of the Mayor’s Action Plan for Neighborhood Safety (MAP), the Office to Prevent Gun Violence (OPGV), and Atlas to empower New Yorkers and work with them to pursue community-driven solutions to public safety.
Want to find out more?
Contact us
If you have questions about The Renaissance Project we can help you. Send us an email, and a member of our team will be in touch to answer your questions.