Info Session — District Design Fellowship

Info Session — District Design Fellowship
Thursday, Aug 21, 3–4 pm
Online only via Zoom (RSVP)

In this info session, learn about the District Design Fellowship — developed in collaboration with the NYC Department of Small Business Services’ Building Creative Capacity initiative.

Small businesses are the heartbeat of vibrant neighborhoods, but many nonprofits supporting NYC’s commercial districts lack access to creative tools that champion local merchants. To strengthen these efforts, the District Design Fellowship invites community-based development organizations (CBDOs) to partner with designers to develop creative, impactful, and innovative “Shop Local” campaigns for their districts.

From Oct 2025–Apr 2026, Fellows will enhance their commercial corridors through design, storytelling, and public engagement. Throughout the program, Fellows will collaborate with dedicated teams of Design Advisors — professionals with relevant expertise in fields such as architecture, graphic design, or urban design. Fellows will also think creatively about design solutions and public space activations in their corridors.

By the end of the fellowship, Fellows will launch elements of “Shop Local” campaigns that celebrate neighborhood identity and harness the power of art and design to boost visibility and foot traffic for small businesses. This suite of materials will enable Fellows to pilot new strategies that strengthen the connection between design, culture, and economic development in their corridors.

Components will include:

• Buy Local Toolkit, which may include cohesive, neighborhood-specific collateral such as brochures, digital graphics, signage, or zines.
• Corridor Design Concept, strategies to leverage a commercial corridor’s public realm. One concept should be implementable as a pilot project during the program duration to test temporary installations, markets, events, or other activation opportunities in their districts.

Fellows will receive a $5,000 stipend in recognition of their time and contributions to the program. Upon completion of their deliverables, Fellows will receive an additional $2,500 grant reserved to implement their Buy Local Toolkit.