Our goal, as we spend out our endowment in the next 12 years, is to build the movement infrastructure to transform transportation funding and spending.
To build that movement, we work in four interconnected ways: local power building, engaging and mobilizing diverse stakeholders, mobilizing philanthropy, and narrative change.
Local Power Building
Strengthen local organizing, mobilize key constituencies, and build a base for transit advocacy.
Grassroots organizing is essential to making public transportation a public and political priority—translating people power into political power. To build and maintain this power, we must organize in unprecedented numbers, and we need our movements to be equipped to create lasting change. We will engage the most effective advocates in communities where the conditions for transformative change are ripest and invest in their ability to win by building their capacity, connecting them to build a nationwide community and movement, and creating platforms and convenings where they can share knowledge.
Broadening the Stakeholders for Transit
To inform state and local work
While local and grassroots organizations can form the core of a powerful movement for transit, it also requires the inclusion of and collaboration with policy organizations and business, labor, and government stakeholders. Grassroots advocates often need support on the design of policy recommendations (often taking the form of research by policy and research organizations) and support in developing political will (from business, labor, and government stakeholders). TransitCenter will connect these groups by supporting practical, campaign-advancing research while fostering new relationships and connections between transit stakeholders.
Narrative Change
To shift the narrative so that many more people see transit as an essential service deserving of more funding
We must shift the narrative so that many more Americans see transit as an essential service deserving of more funding and priority than it currently receives. The prevailing narrative that car-centered lifestyles symbolize freedom and that transit is an unsafe, inferior product that wastes public funds has long impeded the work of advocates. We must sow a different narrative —leading with shared values—that highlights the flaws in our current transportation priorities, fostering a growing awareness of the need for improvement and galvanizing support for change.
Mobilizing Philanthropy
To create impact at scale
At TransitCenter, we are both a grantmaker—providing financial support for transit advocacy—and a resource to other philanthropic organizations, demonstrating how transit is a critical tool for building more just, sustainable, and democratic communities. Historically, philanthropy has often overlooked the role of transit in shaping equitable and thriving communities. By highlighting its transformative impact, we help funders recognize that investing in transit is a critical pathway to creating a just and sustainable future for all.