Annual Report / Bloomberg Associates

Annual Report 2021: Bloomberg Associates

Providing World-Class Consulting to Mayors

Bloomberg Associates is the philanthropic consulting arm of Bloomberg Philanthropies. Founded in 2014, Bloomberg Associates works with client cities to improve residents’ quality of life, taking a strategic, collaborative, and results-oriented approach to make cities stronger, safer, more equitable, and more efficient. This team of experts has worked on hundreds of projects to ignite change and transform cities’ visions into reality. Participating cities have invested more than $2.8 billion in initiatives the team has supported or created, and, in 2021, Bloomberg Associates provided each client city with an average of 7,700 hours in pro bono support.

Stories of Impact
DuRon Netsell

Founder and Principal, Street Smarts Design + Build

“I was very thankful to Bloomberg Philanthropies for providing the opportunity to create a safer intersection in our city. What Bloomberg Philanthropies allowed us to do was to expand our thought process and say, ‘Okay, we can not only make this intersection safer, we can also make it beautiful and artistic.’”

Atlanta, Georgia

Strengthening workforce development in the entertainment industry

Bloomberg Associates and the city launched the Set South Production Assistant Training Program, a free program designed to connect underserved and underemployed Atlantans to careers in the local film and TV industry. The inaugural class of 15 trainees graduated in 2021, and the program’s goal is to graduate more than 100 trainees in the next two years.

Expanding supportive services through a city diversion center

The team helped the city develop the concept and operational model for a Diversion Center that will provide supportive services to people who suffer from behavioral health issues as an alternative to placing them in jail. The center will divert up to 15,000 cases per year from the justice system and represents a historic partnership between the city and county.

Atlanta’s Set South program graduates its inaugural class to help more residents enter the local film and TV industry. Credit: Sylvia McAfee/City of Atlanta

Chicago, Illinois

Improving transparency around workforce diversity and inclusion

Bloomberg Associates expanded work with Chicago to develop the public-facing Workforce Equity Dashboard, which will track workforce diversity and inclusion. Dashboard features include salary data, a map of employees from different wards, and snapshots of the city workforce over time.

Detroit, Michigan

Expunging criminal records that limit job opportunities

Following the passage of a newly expanded law, Bloomberg Associates drove the process to increase access to criminal record expungement for qualified residents, clearing over 700 criminal records. On average, beneficiaries have experienced a 23 percent wage increase.

Breaking ground on a new city greenway

The team supported the city’s launch of the first phase of the 27.5-mile Joe Louis Greenway, a multi-use path being built over 13 miles of abandoned rail line, which will connect dozens of neighborhoods to a regional rail system. Bloomberg Associates is helping Detroit raise over $210 million for construction and continued maintenance.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan speaks at the opening of the first section of the Joe Louis Greenway. Credit: City of Detroit

Podcast

Hear How Detroit Is Helping Eligible People Clear Their Criminal Records

Lima, Peru

Redesigning public spaces to improve accessibility for all

Bloomberg Associates created a design evaluation toolkit for the agency that manages Lima’s public parks, helping to improve the accessibility and experience at 12 downtown parks – with plans to advise on 42 additional parks throughout the city.

London, United Kingdom

Mapping residents most vulnerable to climate change

Bloomberg Associates produced an online mapping tool to identify areas in London most exposed to climate risks, with a particular focus on zones with high concentrations of vulnerable residents, such as children and seniors. The maps are now an important resource used by the city to determine new investments and climate initiatives.

London’s maps show concentrations of vulnerable residents exposed to the impacts of climate change.

Milan, Italy

Promoting tourism and city marketing efforts

The team shared guidance on tourism recovery, best-practice research, and strategic planning to help strengthen Milan’s reputation as an international tourist destination, particularly as the city recovers from COVID-19.

Newark residents create tiles for Harriet Tubman Square.

Newark, New Jersey

Creating a community-centered process for public art

Bloomberg Associates helped the city’s arts and cultural affairs division create a process to commission a new monument in honor of Harriet Tubman and New Jersey’s role in the Underground Railroad. Designed to be a welcoming gathering space in downtown Newark, the monument project involves community members in every step of its development.

Launching the city’s first shared bike and e-scooter program

The team collaborated with the city and partners to develop and roll out Newark’s first-ever shared “micro-mobility” program, providing affordable shared bikes and e-scooters to residents. In the program’s first six months, operating partners registered over 170,000 trips, reducing congestion and emissions.

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka rides one of the city’s first shared bicycles.

Across the United States

Leveraging federal funding for city COVID-19 recovery efforts

With Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Government Innovation team, Bloomberg Associates launched an e311 program in partnership with the U.S. Conference of Mayors to help city leaders identify, obtain, and retain federal funding for COVID-19 response and recovery efforts using an online portal, webinars, and one-on-one guidance.

Bloomberg Associates program

Providing world-class consulting and mentorship to mayors and their teams in order to improve residents’ lives in cities across the globe.