Shark Tank Final Project

Our final project was to find a local nonprofit organization that implements climate mitigation techniques. This assignment is designed to simulate a Shark Tank episode, but instead of trying to sell a product to an investor, we are advertising our nonprofit as the one that should receive funding. Our purpose was to define the needs of the organization so that they could further their efforts in healing their community. With these guidelines, my group chose The Heights Movement. This nonprofit works to enhance the area of Lincoln Heights to build climate, economic, and educational resilience.

Throughout our research progress we learned more about the history, current efforts, and future endeavors of The Heights Movement. Our group reached out to one of the founders, Daronce Daniels, for an interview. This was a great opportunity to connect with the nonprofit and learn from the source what their needs are. During the chat, we were so inspired by his passion and enthusiasm to help the local area. He defined the communities needs in that they need funding to implement walking paths and bike lanes in the neighborhood. As well as a further need for communication to get their name out to the public. With this spread of awareness, they can increase their volunteer help in education, gardening, and building projects.

This project was eye-opening to me. I have never spent time researching the local nonprofits in my area. Through this assignment I became aware of all the efforts our community members are putting forth to improve our neighborhood's climate resilience. This is inspiring to me that there are people who share empathy for folks and the environment. With my knowledge of these nonprofits, I plan to volunteer to help build connections and resilience from the effects of climate change.

This project is still under construction and will be presented in the last week of class. Below is our current work on the project.