Gucci announced the second round of recipients for its five-year Gucci North America Changemakers Impact Fund. Launched in 2019, the Fund awards $1 million USD annually in grants to support community organizations focused on increasing inclusion and diversity across communities and cities.
The 2021 Gucci Changemakers Impact Fund grantees represent the inspiring work of organizations led by diverse non profit leaders working across the fields of social, cultural, and economic issues impacting communities across North America. Their focus areas include mental health for women and girls, workforce development programs for under/unemployed people, innovative art and fashion platforms for Black and brown creatives, and resources for LGBTQ+ communities.
More than 250 organizations submitted their applications for the second round of the Gucci North America Changemakers Impact Fund. Each of the 15 awarded non-profit recipients will receive a grant for up to $50,000 for a one-year funding cycle starting March 1, 2021 and will be used to create new programs or scale existing initiatives.
Gucci worked diligently with the North America Changemakers Council and outside experts to review each application to select the 15 grantees. The list of the 15 selected grantees is as follows:
• Misa Hylton Fashion Academy, New York, NY
• SoHarlem, New York, NY
• Weird Enough Productions, Atlanta, GA
• Sista Afya, Chicago, IL
• SocialWorks, Chicago, IL
• JOURNi, Detroit, MI
• Magpies and Peacocks, Houston, TX
• The Academy Foundation/Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Los Angeles, CA
• We Are R.I.S.E., Los Angeles, CA
• Radical Partners, Miami, FL
• ProjectArt, New Orleans, LA
• Tools and Tiaras, Philadelphia, PA
• The African American Art & Culture Complex, San Francisco, CA
• Human Rights Campaign, Washington D.C.
• UforChange, Toronto, ON, Canada
In addition, the selected grantees will have the opportunity to engage in volunteer activities with Gucci employees, Town Hall conversations with Gucci leadership, and additional programming with Gucci’s North America Brand and Culture Engagement team.
Aligning Gucci social good strategy with the external brand activities and continuing to support the 2020 and 2021 Impact Fund grant recipients and their communities, there will be a first time Gucci Changemakers product collaboration to be announced March 2021.
The 2020 Impact Fund grantees include the ACLU of Louisiana in New Orleans, Black AIDS Institute in Los Angeles, Braven in Chicago, Custom Collaborative in New York City, and Thurgood Marshall College Fund in Washington, DC. Through the funding provided by Gucci Changemakers, the 2020 grantees were able to accomplish necessary work needed within these communities including a report highlighting pretrial incarceration in Louisiana, as well as powering a fashion program that brought together designers of color and commercial spaces in Detroit to showcase their creative designs. Additionally, as a result of the covid-19 pandemic, the grantees were able to quickly pivot by making PPE for essential workers, creating relief funds for students attending HBCUs, and distributing tablets to students to allow virtual learning.
The next round of applications for the Gucci Changemakers Impact Fund will open in the Fall of 2021.
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