irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024
What they reported doing
- #1 primary $82KOther programs:PPL continues to maintain a small portfolio of programs led by grassroots nonprofit leaders. Longstanding programs like GROW Externships, Seeds to Soil, and Design Dream Lab continued their programming throughout 2024. Newer initiatives continued to develop their programming like Earthlings.NYC (organizing their 2nd annual NYC Charity Turtle Race and new invertebrate zoology education programs) and Our Secret Ingredient is Love (organizing educational, participatory, plant-based food events through the lens of important cultural holidays such as Lunar New Year, Tombsweeping Day, and Diwali).
- #2 $52KOur Collective Becoming:OCB continues its programming focused around social repair: co-creating a web of belonging in a time of intensified grief and accelerating forms of collapse and devastation: climate grief, interpersonal grief, accelerating global violence, moral devastation, symbolic devastation, the collapse of our political order, and the violence of our reigning economic order. Through community dinners, speaking engagements, and facilitated mutual aid networks, OCB continued to build on its mission of imagining and bring to life another world through a politics of en conjunto, or togetherness.
named programs · 10 · from sources
What they call their work
Design Dream Lab
Community initiative that uses empathy-based co-creation to address collective challenges, hosting monthly gatherings for creative individuals to collaborate on social impact through design thinking.
Earthlings.NYC
Offers citizen science and ecology education in New York City, enabling learners of all ages to interact with diverse organisms and explore human relationships with local flora and fauna.
Emergent Works
Trains and employs formerly incarcerated individuals in tech programming, providing education, community, and employment while developing technology solutions to support criminal justice reform.
Free Poster Program
Produces educational art posters that riff on K-12 curriculum to enrich learning and support educators with creative, accessible teaching materials.
GROW Externships
Provides paid externships for BIPOC, woman-identifying, and LGBTQIA2S+ professionals in sustainability, climate justice, and environmental science to advance equity in the green workforce.
Our Collective Becoming
Formerly the Activist Theology Project, this initiative fosters social repair and belonging through community dinners, mutual aid networks, and facilitated gatherings centered on "en conjunto" (deep togetherness).
Our Secret Ingredient is Love
Culinary collective creating plant-based, culturally inclusive meals during holidays like Lunar New Year, Tombsweeping Day, and Diwali to promote community wellness and collective enjoyment.
PreProBono
Supports economically disadvantaged, underrepresented minority, and female pre-law students through LSAT prep, admissions workshops, and public interest network building to empower future social justice leaders.
Prime Produce Community Event Series
Hosts and supports emerging nonprofit events, creative productions, and performances in a centrally located Hell’s Kitchen venue to increase access for social good event producers.
Seeds to Soil
Supports urban ecologies through community gardens, grassroots social entrepreneurship, and citizen science initiatives, fostering resilient city systems and shared stewardship of common spaces.
activities · 5 groups
What they do
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Nonprofit Capacity Building Services 2 activities
- Fiscal sponsorship for grassroots nonprofitsProvides fiscal sponsorship, administrative support, regulatory compliance, and back-end infrastructure to emerging nonprofit leaders and community-based initiatives such as PTAs, GROW Externships, Seeds to Soil, Design Dream Lab, and the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, enabling them to receive tax-deductible donations without forming independent 501(c)(3) organizations.
- Operational and strategic support for nonprofit leadersStewards a relational ecosystem for community service projects and provides operational, strategic, and creative services to nonprofit leaders and their programs, strengthening the capacity of early-stage initiatives.
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Community Stewardship Volunteer Programs 1 activity
- Community engagement and environmental initiativesDesigns and implements community-driven environmental projects such as the Pollinators Bench, Tiny Plots community garden, and Conflict Transformation Circles; organizes resource exchanges, community dinners, speaking events, and mutual aid networks; reached over 1,000 participants through collaborative design and sustainability programming.
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Artist Residencies and Studio Programs 1 activity
- Community fellowship and capacity-building programsOffers space grants, 24/7 access to a multipurpose guildhall, microgrants, peer apprenticeships, network engagement, and retreats for selected fellows and community builders; supports collaborative design, empathy-based problem solving, and social repair through programs like Design Dream Lab and Open Benefit events.
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Organizational Newsletter Production and Distribution 1 activity
- Digital and creative community platformsMaintains a Substack newsletter with over 21,000 subscribers, a Mighty Networks community app with approximately 100 participants offering courses and connection, and a mailing list for sharing NYC event updates; produces free educational posters and art materials to support K-12 creative learning.
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Legal Education and Career Pipeline Programs 1 activity
- Education and career pathway programs for underrepresented groupsProvides low-cost or free LSAT preparation and law school admissions consulting to economically disadvantaged, underrepresented minority, and female pre-law students through pay-it-forward fellowship cycles; operates an in-house software development agency offering mentorship and skills training to justice-involved and unemployed individuals seeking tech careers; runs GROW Externships offering field experience in ecological and agricultural science for systemically excluded students.
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financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$464K
Contributions & grants$455K98%
Program service revenue$8K2%
Investment income$2K0%
Other revenue$191
expenses
Total expenses$471K
Program expenses86%
Admin / overhead14%
Fundraising0%
Salaries & benefits$0
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineProfessional Fees
balance sheet
Total assets$221K
Cash$92K
Investments$128K
Liabilities$10K
Net assets$211K
Liquid reserves5.6 mo
5 years on record · 2019–2024 · YoY revenue -62.7%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024
Who runs it
board members · 3
- James Williams — Treasurer
- Jerone Hsu — President
- Ling Kong — Secretary
relationships · 15
Who they work with
- Be Social Change Partner — Collaborated to organize The Nonprofit Connector Series events and webinars for social impact professionals.
- Design Dream Lab Partner — Fiscally sponsored program supporting creative community development initiatives.
- Earthlings.NYC Partner — 501(c)3 initiative affiliated with Prime Produce and Seeds to Soil, based at the Prime Produce guildhall.
- Earthlings.NYC Partner — Fiscally sponsored project organizing conservation events and invertebrate zoology education programs.
- GROW Externships Partner — Fiscally sponsored program providing experiential learning opportunities for emerging nonprofit leaders.
- Guild for Good Partner — Hosts the Village Fellowship program in partnership with Prime Produce Limited.
- Harvard Law School Partner — Hosted PreProBono Fellowship Summit and enrolled fellows such as Reema Doleh.
- Our Secret Ingredient is Love Partner — Fiscally sponsored initiative hosting cultural and plant-based food education events.
- PreProBono Partner — Fiscally sponsored organization providing pro bono services to community initiatives.
- Prime Produce Apprentice Cooperative Partner — Operates the Prime Produce Guildhall where Design Dream Lab events are held
- Prime Produce Apprentice Cooperative Partner — Partners with Prime Produce Limited to operate the guildhall and co-host the Community Event Series.
- Seeds to Soil Partner — Affiliated initiative that collaborates on urban ecology and community garden projects; Earthlings.NYC is a 501(c)3 initiative linked to both.
- Seeds to Soil Partner — Fiscally sponsored initiative creating environmental projects at the intersection of plants and people in urban settings.
- Soup Partner — Organization supported by Prime Produce Limited in its affordable housing work in California.
- U.S. Department of Arts and Culture Partner — Fiscally sponsored initiative supported by Prime Produce Limited during its early development.
strategies · 5
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Community-Led Innovation with Pay-It-Forward Leadership 597 orgsmethodology: community_led_innovationBy supporting innovation that originates from grassroots communities and using a pay-it-forward model where former participants return as leaders, we ensure authentic local ownership and sustainable capacity building because lived experience drives relevant, trusted solutions.shared approach: Community-Led Systems Change →
- Grassroots Interdependence Model 597 orgsmethodology: grassroots_interdependenceBy fostering a network of mutual support among nonprofit leaders rooted in personal relationships, we grow community-led initiatives because shared experience and trust enable resilient, adaptive social entrepreneurship.shared approach: Community-Led Systems Change →
- Autonomy with Centralized Accountability 379 orgsmethodology: autonomy_with_accountabilityBy granting programmatic autonomy to sponsored initiatives while maintaining centralized financial oversight, we foster innovation and mission alignment because independence in design increases initiative engagement while structural accountability ensures compliance and sustainability.shared approach: Unrestricted Grantmaking →
- Philosophy of En Conjunto for Collective Belonging 92 orgsmethodology: en conjuntoBy operating through "en conjunto" — deep togetherness — we foster social repair and collective belonging because shared response to emergent conditions builds trust, resilience, and cultural transformation.shared approach: Restorative Community Building →
- Values-Based Independence in Fundingmethodology: independence_preserving_donation_reviewBy accepting donations only when aligned with shared values and rejecting those that confer influence, we preserve organizational integrity and independence because funding without strings enables mission-driven programming and ethical governance.