The 34th America’s Cup
Putting Wind into the Sails of San Francisco’s Low-Income Communities
The 34th America’s Cup will leave an unforgettable mark on San Francisco and the entire Bay Area region through the tourism, jobs, infrastructure, and world class attention it will bring. With REDF and its social enterprise partners, it can do even more.
A Legacy of Impact
The Bay Area is known as a center of innovation. As host for the 34th America’s Cup, San Francisco will harness its most innovative assets—social, political, cultural & financial—to produce a sporting event to be rivaled around the world. But the legacy of the 34th America’s Cup
can be more than the grand structures it erects or the record sponsorship dollars it will deservedly attract.By using social enterprise vendors, the 34th America’s Cup will leave a legacy of impact through the jobs it creates and the nonprofits it strengthens. It will stand as a model of job creation and employment for the region’s most disadvantaged residents and communities—a model that will be emulated as a sustainable, scalable way to harness the power of sport to transform lives and neighborhoods.
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Contestants in the 34th America’s Cup will aim for one thing — to be the leader at the end of the race. Likewise, the organizers of this prestigious event can be a leader in sport by establishing a precedent for future competitions of this scale.
.................................................................................................Charity is Not the Only Way
The 34th America’s Cup is expected to generate $1 billion for the region’s economy. But how can this immense value creation benefit those that would normally be left out? What if there was an opportunity, not through charity, but through business, to lift low-income individuals facing barriers to employment into the workforce? To transform lives and communities through jobs?
Social enterprise is that opportunity. Social enterprises are nonprofit-operated businesses
that provide goods and services to the marketplace. Not only are they qualified vendors
in diverse industries such as hospitality, landscaping, maintenance, recycling, and screen
printing, but they employ individuals whose job prospects have been dimmed by homelessness,
incarceration, addiction, and mental illness.
Social enterprise jobs are the launching pads to stable employment for the chronically unemployed. Employees receive training and support, earn wages, pay taxes, and often reduce their reliance on costly public programs. Unlike most charities, the nonprofit operator earns income, improving its sustainability.
Social enterprise also paves the way for the 34th America’s Cup to leverage the relationships— business, philanthropic & government—of the nonprofits it backs to attract even more financial support.
Additional Links:
Our Portfolio
Success Stories
Social Impact Report
WHAT DOES SOCIAL ENTERPRISE LOOK LIKE?
Juma Ventures is an innovative and award-winning youth development program that combines employment in a social enterprise, college preparation and asset building to ensure that their participants complete a four-year college education.
Juma Ventures operates vending and concessions enterprises in major California stadiums and arenas including AT&T Park (San Francisco), Oracle Arena (Oakland), and Qualcomm Stadium (San Diego). In partnership with companies like Centerplate, Aramark, and Sodexho, more than 200 Juma Ventures’ youth each year sell ice cream, coffee, nuts and more.
To date, these young people have earned more than $2 million in wages and saved $1.8 million more through an innovative matched savings account that helps defray the cost of higher education. In addition, Juma Ventures’ participants receive year-round assistance from trained educators to ensure their college success while also having the opportunity to return for summer employment.
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