Miami, FL

To portray fluorescent corals as living art forms in a new, pop-cultural iconography of Miami that reflects its unique subtropical location and growing intellectual, artistic identity

To help address the shortage of women in the technology field by deploying a new program in Detroit, Miami and San Jose to encourage girls (ages 13-17) to build their skills and seek opportunities in technology

About our Miami Strategy

Knight Foundation promotes informed and engaged communities. In Miami, the foundation’s home, that strategy is expressed by supporting the talented creatives, entrepreneurs, innovators, and agents of change who are shaping the community’s future.

Start-up culture

Knight Foundation is investing in the spaces and events where innovators, entrepreneurs, investors and academics can collide and connect. The goal is to foster a startup culture, open to the broader community, that helps make Miami a place where ideas are built.

Arts

Knight seeks to strengthen attachment in South Florida by bringing art to the people. In the last four years, Knight Arts Challenge has pooled over 5,000 ideas. A second season of Random Acts of Culture brought brief cultural performances to public places throughout Miami-Dade County. Local artists continue to gain support across the region as part of the 2012 People’s Choice Awards Miami.

Community Engagement

Miami’s ever-evolving population – some 50 percent of residents were born elsewhere – offers a window into the future of America’s cities. A number of national Knight Foundation initiatives are active in Miami, where community engagement involves individuals of all backgrounds. For example, Knight supports a naturalization program to help permanent legal residents to become U.S. citizens and step up to full participation in their communities. KaBOOM! develops civic leaders by bringing people together to improve their neighborhood playgrounds. And TurboVote, an online voter registration platform, received a big early boost from Knight and three Miami universities.

Universal Access

Knight Foundation supports both local and national projects that ensure digital access for all. Much of the critical information people need to make decisions is offered solely online. We launched a $3.3 million initiative to expand free Internet access in Miami and across the nation. We also hosted a weekend gathering of library leaders, to tour a new projects Miami’s North Dade Regional Library. One Laptop Per Child aims to provide children around the world - including Miami - with laptops and support that connect them to the wider world of learning.

About Our Engaged Communities Strategy

To help sustain healthy communities in a democracy, we aim to increase the ability of individuals to engage in change.
Trabian Shorters on our strategy

Staff

Matt Haggman

Program Director/Miami

Miami Community Advisory Committee

• Javier Soto (chair)
• Robert Barlick, Jr.
• Juan Pablo Cappello
• Vivian Donnell Rodriguez
• Evelyn Greer
• Louis-Albert Jolivert