What is a Social Impact Studio?

City Rising is a social impact studio rooted in the traditions of social practice art—a creative and community-centered approach to improving conditions in specific communities or the world at large. Social practice art assumes that artists have both the agency and the responsibility to drive social change through close collaboration with community members. We believe this responsibility is also shared by knowledge workers and social service professionals. Guided by this perspective, we see research, policymaking, community development, and community repair as creative, humanizing endeavors grounded in justice, collaboration, and joy.

Our work amplifies the desires, aspirations, and assets that already exist within a community or organization, fostering networks and solving problems to build a stronger sense of ownership in the places where we live, work, and grow. At City Rising, social change and community repair are embraced as forms of culture work, where knowledge, craft, and art combine to address real issues and create meaningful change one project, one person, and one community at a time.

We are driven by a theory-informed yet action-oriented approach, utilizing asset-based methods that prioritize the voices and wishes of those most impacted by social concerns. Discovery, collaboration, and authentic relationships are at the heart of what we do. Motivated by community repair and harm reduction, we measure our success by our tangible impact on people. Always curious and inquisitive, we are guided by a commitment to justice and the belief that while expertise and knowledge are widely distributed, their recognition often is not. By harnessing the power of storytelling and working to disrupt power asymmetries and unequal outcomes, we aim to transform communities and lives.

What Do We Do?

At City Rising, we:

• Research, design, launch, and evaluate projects that empower people and communities to recognize and harness their capacity for transformation.

• Investigate the root causes of harm and social concerns to identify humanizing and justice-oriented responses.

• Design, organize, and lead initiatives that repair and strengthen communities harmed by policies and neglect.

• Advocate and create policy recommendations that reduce harm, foster equity, and promote positive outcomes.

• Evaluate programs and projects to measure their impact on communities and residents, ensuring effectiveness and accountability.

• Support community-facing organizations in developing practices that humanize relationships and cultivate social cohesion, fostering positive social change.

• Create tools that allow others to generate and sustain social impact. 

• Cultivate and support community leaders and professionals to integrate asset-based, humanizing, and justice-oriented approaches in their practices.

City Rising is a place where justice meets creativity, where knowledge and action work in tandem, where craft intersects with community, and where the power of human connection drives change and fosters connected, humanizing communities.