New multi-year grant of up to $1.5 million will be awarded to help Austin tackle homelessness
Today, Bloomberg Philanthropies recognized the city of Austin as a new member of its Innovation Team program, which helps City Halls drive bold innovation, change culture, and tackle big problems to deliver better results for residents. Austin was selected from a pool of municipalities with a demonstrated commitment to designing and delivering bold solutions to solve homelessness. Other cities selected for the global program include Be’er Sheva, Israel; Toronto, Canada, and Anchorage, AK; Austin, TX; Baltimore, MD; Detroit, MI; and Durham; NC in the United States.
Currently in the third round of funding, the program will allow Mayor Steve Adler and the City Council to fund an in-house innovation team, or “i-team”, to pioneer new approaches on homelessness.
“This grant will help us tackle problems in new ways that reflect who we are in Austin, and I’m excited to see what can come from this,” said Mayor Adler. “When we effectively ended veteran homelessness, we learned how effective new partnerships between the business community, philanthropists and non-profits could be. Bloomberg’s grant will allow our Innovation Office to experiment with new ways to house the homeless.”
Innovation Teams investigate complex local challenges, design solutions with clear goals, and rigorously measure progress to improve citizens’ lives.
Each city will be awarded up to $500,000 annually for up to three years. In addition to the grants, the city will receive robust implementation support and opportunities to exchange lessons learned and best practices with peers in other cities. The i-team will embark on their mission to design and deliver bold solutions for the city’s most challenging problems.
The Innovation Teams Program is one of seven Government Innovation offerings at Bloomberg Philanthropies. Government Innovation equips mayors and other city leaders with the tools and techniques they need to solve urban challenges and improve citizens’ lives.
Eligible cities with at least 100,000 residents and with mayors who have at least two years left in office were invited to apply for the current round of funding.
More information about the Innovation Team Program is available through the Bloomberg Philanthropies website.
About Bloomberg Philanthropies
Bloomberg Philanthropies’ mission is to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on five key areas for creating lasting change: Public Health, Environment, Education, Government Innovation and the Arts. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg’s charitable activities, including his foundation and his personal giving. In 2015, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $510 million. For more information, please visit www.bloomberg.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter @BloombergDotOrg.
Media Contacts:
Mayor’s office: Jason Stanford, jason.stanford@austintexas.gov, 512-619-5756
City of Austin: Kerry O’Connor, Austin’s Chief Innovation Officer, kerry.oconnor@austintexas.gov, 202-375-3126
Bloomberg Philanthropies: Alexis Weiss, alexis.weiss@edelman.com, 202-203-0066